If you were to film this entire saga of dispute between the writers, actors, and the studios, it would be like the Fast and Furious franchise. Just when you think, “Ah, it’s over now,” you’re hit with one more problem.
For years, payment for streaming has existed in a gray area, with not much clarity provided to anyone. Even during discussions, it emerges as the central pillar of the disagreement.
Previously, it was reported that talks between SAG-AFTRA and the studios had broken down because the gap between both sides was too great to continue the fruitless discussion.
You might ask, “How great can it be?” To be precise, it’s $480 million (₹3495 crore).
SAG-AFTRA is pushing for a streaming residual formula of $500 million, while the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers is currently only offering $20 million. Talking about fair play, the studios are on a quest to see how much they can bend the rules to pay less to the creative backbone of any and every show.
The concern isn’t limited to finances; the usage of AI is also unclear. However, it’s the payment gap that broke the talks down.
WGA was fighting for the fact that successful shows on the platform should pay the writers more. Even for late bloomer shows like “Suits,” what the writers received is indeed a mockery.
WGA secured a small bonus for successful streaming shows, starting at around $5 million annually, but SAG-AFTRA aims much higher with a proposal for streaming platforms to pay 57 cents per subscriber per year, totaling $500 million annually across all platforms.
AMPTP was reportedly offering the same deal that was previously accepted by WGA, with 99% of the votes in favor of it. Even in terms of any successful shows, the deal reads that the writers will get a 50% bonus on their fixed residual. (A show will be considered a hit if the domestic views reach the equivalent of 20% of the domestic user base within 90 days).
But that is truly an unfair deal as many shows that had a late start, such as “Suits” and “Wednesday,” gained popularity, but late.
In terms of the actors, the payment will be a bit more than the writers, but it is still miles apart from what the organization actually wants. The studios are also determined not to share a share of the revenue.
SAG-AFTRA was proposing a 57-cent subscriber formula, but that seemed too much for the studios. The previous deal included $1 per subscriber, taking it to $800 million a year, but that has been reduced to $500 million in the most recent negotiations.
So, the strike continues, and there is no proper deadline for it. During the past week or so, many movies and cinema have been postponed, and some haven’t even given any ideas about the release date. In the long run, this ‘profit over pact’ strategy will do more and more harm like a tumor does to the body.