Hollywood is about to strike


JackFetch

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With the strike ending, CW is asking for 5 more Smallville episodes.

Heroes is definitely done for the season according to Hayden Panettiere.

Most ratings powerhouses -- like ABC's "Desperate Housewives," NBC' "The Office" and CBS' "CSI" and "Two and a Half Men" -- will likely be back on the air by the end of March. They'll probably produce four to eight episodes for broadcast this season.

From TV Guide:

24

Expected to return this fall or January '09.

30 Rock

Expected to shoot 5 to 10 new episodes to air in April/May.

Back to You

Two pre-strike episodes remain. Future TBD*.

The Big Bang Theory

Expected to shoot 5 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Big Love

Expected to go into production on Season 3 in March. Airdate info is TBD.

Big Shots

No new episodes expected. Ever.

Bionic Woman

No new episodes expected. Ever.

Bones

Four pre-strike episodes left. Unclear whether additional episodes will be produced for this season.

Boston Legal

Expected to shoot 4 or 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Brothers & Sisters

One pre-strike episode remains. Expected to shoot 4 or 5 additional episodes to air in April/May.

Burn Notice

Production on Season 2 expected to get underway in late April. New episodes could start airing as early as July.

Chuck

No new episodes until fall.

The Closer

Expected to kick off its fourth season this summer.

Cold Case

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Criminal Minds

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

CSI

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

CSI: Miami

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

CSI: NY

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Desperate Housewives

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Dirty Sexy Money

No new episodes planned until fall; three remaining pre-strike episodes will undergo some tweaking and kick off fall run.

ER

TBD.

Everybody Hates Chris

Twelve pre-strike episodes remain. No additional episodes expected for this season.

Friday Night Lights

No new episodes expected for this season. Future TBD.

Ghost Whisperer

TBD.

Gossip Girl

Expected to shoot up to 9 new episodes to air in April/May/June.

Greek

Kicks off second half of Season 1 on March 24. Still awaiting Season 2 pickup.

Grey's Anatomy

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May

Heroes

TBD.

House

Expected to shoot 4 to 6 new episodes to air in April/May.

How I Met Your Mother

Expected to shoot 5 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Jericho

Seven episodes remain. No additional episodes expected for this season.

Journeyman

No new episodes expected. Ever.

Las Vegas

Two pre-strike episodes remain. No additional episodes expected for this season.

Law & Order

TBD.

Law & Order: CI

TBD.

Law & Order: SVU

Production resumes in early March. Remains unclear whether episodes produced will be for this season or next.

Life

No new episodes expected until fall.

Life Is Wild

No new episodes expected. Ever.

Lost

Six pre-strike episodes remain. Six additional episodes could air this season.

Medium

Six pre-strike episodes remain. No additional episodes expected this season.

Men in Trees

Eleven pre-strike episodes remain. No additional episodes expected this season.

Moonlight

No new episodes expected until fall.

My Name Is Earl

Expected to shoot 8 to 10 new episodes to air in April/May.

NCIS

Expected to shoot 5 to 7 new episodes, only three of which may air this season.

The New Adventures of Old Christine

Seven pre-strike episodes remain. No additional episodes expected this season.

Nip/Tuck

Season 5 concludes Feb. 19. Production on the show's eight-episode sixth season expected to start up this summer. Airdate TBD.

Numbers

Expected to shoot 5 to 7 new episodes, only three of which may air this season.

October Road

Five pre-strike episodes remain. Future beyond that TBD.

The Office

Expected to shoot 5 to 10 new episodes to air in April/May.

One Tree Hill

Six pre-strike episodes remain. Future beyond that TBD.

Prison Break

Two pre-strike episodes remain. Future beyond that TBD.

Private Practice

Slim chance it could return with 4 or 5 new episodes this season. Either way, it'll be back in the fall.

Pushing Daisies

No new episodes until fall.

Reaper

Three pre-strike episodes remain. Future beyond that TBD.

Samantha Who?

Three remaining pre-strike episodes remain. Expected to shoot an additional 4 to 8 episodes to air after the new season of Dancing with the Stars.

Saturday Night Live

Could be back on the air as early as Feb. 16.

Scrubs

Four pre-strike episodes remain. Four additional episodes will likely be shot; unclear whether they'll air on NBC or go straight to DVD.

Smallville

Four pre-strike episodes remain. Expected to shoot 3 to 5 additional episodes to air in April/May.

Supernatural

Two pre-strike episodes remain. Expected to shoot 3 to 5 additional episodes to air in April/May.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles

Five pre-strike episodes remain. Future beyond that TBD.

Two and a Half Men

Expected to shoot 5 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Ugly Betty

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Without a Trace

Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Women's Murder Club

Shocking development: A deal to bring the show back this season is being hammered out as I write this. Stay tuned...

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Hoperfully there will be some more Reaper and Criminal Minds. Jeb Loeb said in a podcast a while back that unless the strike was over by december there would be no more Heroes till season 3

I updated it while you were posting.

I didn't realize Bionic Woman was canceled. While I wasn't a huge fan, I thought it had a following.

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Hoperfully there will be some more Reaper and Criminal Minds. Jeb Loeb said in a podcast a while back that unless the strike was over by december there would be no more Heroes till season 3

I updated it while you were posting.

I didn't realize Bionic Woman was canceled. While I wasn't a huge fan, I thought it had a following.

I have been reading all over that it has been cancelled, but other interviews with NBC states that they still have an obligation to finish up to 13 episodes, but the show hasn't been cancelled. I'm confused, because while the show wasn't all that good, it is the first season and every show needs to be given a chance.

For instance, I enjoyed Tru Calling and Birds of Prey and saw potential in the series to be even better, but it wasn't given a chance and cancelled. Aquaman wasn't even given a chance to air on TV.

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As showrunners flip on the lights and scribes once again occupy long-abandoned writers' rooms, network and studio execs are still figuring out what lives, what dies -- and when it all comes back.

ABC got the ball rolling Monday, renewing nine series for fall in a post-strike pickup binge.

The renewals were essentially no-brainers, encompassing some of the Alphabet web's top-rated scripted performers. Frosh series scoring orders include "Dirty Sexy Money," "Private Practice," "Pushing Daisies" and "Samantha Who?" All four have received 13-episode pickups, as is standard practice among frosh skeins.

ABC staples earning another year include "Brothers & Sisters," "Desperate Housewives," "Grey's Anatomy," "Lost" and "Ugly Betty." Most of those received complete 22-episode orders (with some exceptions -- "Lost," for example, was originally slated to produce 16 episodes next year but may produce a few more if a full 16 aren't shot this year).

Several other networks are planning announcements in the next few days spelling out their spring and fall plans.

Network strategists have already worked out templates on how to handle remaining back-nine orders on returning shows: Some have been truncated, some scratched altogether -- and a few skeins will still be asked to deliver that entire full-season order.

But now, of course, the nets will finally be able to sit down with showrunners and writers to see what's doable in the few remaining months of the season.ABC

The early renewal of key primetime series has now given ABC and the studios behind its shows ample leeway in planning schedules for the next several months.

That's helpful because each show has different needs and capabilities. Some will still be able to produce a good chunk of their back-nine orders this year, allowing ABC to bring them back in the spring. ("Desperate Housewives," "Grey's Anatomy" and "Ugly Betty" are all expected to reappear with several episodes before the season's out.)

Others may produce much of that back order but still wait until September before making a grand re-entrance. That's the case with Wednesday frosh entries "Pushing Daisies" and "Private Practice," as ABC -- which has been holding its own on the night anyway vs. "American Idol" competish -- opts to give those still-new shows a proper relaunch.

As for "Lost," exec producer Carlton Cuse said he and fellow showrunner Damon Lindelof would meet with ABC brass today to hammer out the plan for the rest of the season. They won't be able to finish the remaining eight segs of the show's planned 16-episode season -- five is a more likely number -- but they will be able to craft a completed storyline for the remainder of this season, Cuse said.

And whatever segs are not produced this season will be picked up down the road in the show's remaining two seasons, Cuse said.

"We're going to try to make as many as we can and do a good job of finishing out this season," he said. "We'll have to compress some of the storytelling we planned for this season, and that may not be a bad thing. Damon and I feel like we know how we can finish it off and still make it a really, really great story."

Over at David E. Kelley Prods., the shingle is prepping the return of "Boston Legal." A spokeswoman said the show could be back in front of cameras as soon as next Wednesday -- most likely making it the first drama to resume shooting post-strike. (Scribe Kelley can churn out scripts so swiftly that such a breakneck return to production isn't a surprise.)

"Boston Legal" had already shot 14 segs of its 22-episode order. Given the show's quick return, Kelley's production company believes it can still fulfill that commitment before the end of the season.

CBS

Dramas moving forward include all three editions of the "CSI" franchise, "NCIS," "Without a Trace," "Cold Case," "Numbers," "Criminal Minds," "Ghost Whisperer" and "Moonlight."

Laffers given a greenlight are "Two and a Half Men," "How I Met Your Mother" and "The Big Bang Theory."

Net is hoping to crank out eight segs of its comedies and six or seven segs of each of its dramas. Newcomer "Moonlight" will likely produce fewer segs.

Eye insiders are hoping to begin rolling out new episodes of the comedies by mid-March, while the hope is to have dramas begin popping up the first week in April.

While CBS isn't expected to finalize decisions until Wednesday at the earliest, a couple of shows are likely to stay out of production for now.

So far, CBS hasn't asked for more episodes of dramas "Shark" or "The Unit." Both shows are on the bubble for a return next fall.

CBS has told the producers of newcomer "Cane," meanwhile, that no more episodes will be produced this season. Skein remains a contender for renewal next season, however.

Also up in the air: midseason drama "Swingtown," which had been set to bow in the spring. CBS has produced only a couple of episodes of the show and is now undecided as to whether it will move forward with the project, which offers a vast departure from the Eye's usual crimetime fare.

CBS is also waiting to see more numbers for "The New Adventures of Old Christine" before deciding whether to expand its current midseason run. There's also no word yet on the future of "Rules of Engagement," which has done well when it aired on the net.

It's possible CBS will air originals of a few of its shows as late as June, but so far, no scheduling decisions have been locked in.

FOX

Fox plans to extend the regular TV season in order to take advantage of late-delivered episodes from shows including "House." Originals of certain shows could continue airing into June, web insiders said, or else in August. Such a scenario would make good on long-promised attempts at running original scripted fare during the vacation months.

As a result, in most cases, the net is still looking to honor full back-nine orders -- depending on the feasibility of such a task.

Serialized series won't return until next season, however; the net felt that producers -- not to mention viewers -- may have trouble getting back into those shows' storylines at this late date. (Certain skeins, like "Prison Break," already wrapped with a de facto season closer anyway.)

Then there's "24." Fox has decided not to try forcing a full season of the Kiefer Sutherland drama at this late date; show won't return until January.

As for its large crop of midseason shows, Fox's needs are already filled, which means no additional episodes of shows like "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" or "Canterbury's Law" will be shot.

NBC

NBC is expected to bring back most of its Thursday laffers, including "My Name Is Earl," "The Office" and "30 Rock." It's not yet clear how many episodes of "Scrubs" will be produced. NBC has said the skein is in its final season; network and producer ABC Studios are negotiating just how many segs creator Bill Lawrence will get to wrap up his show.

The Peacock is contractually obligated to produce more "ER" segs this season, and it seems likely at least four to six of those will air starting in April. The net is also said to be in talks with Warner Bros. TV about a reduction in "ER's" license fee that would allow the show to return for another season in the fall.

"Law & Order: SVU" should also resume production on new episodes, while "Medium" is gearing up to come back to finish out its season.

NBC remains high on newcomer "Chuck," but the odds are that the show won't return until late summer (after the Olympics) or early fall. "Heroes," with its elaborate serialized storyline, is also expected to take the summer to regroup.

It helps that ABC and NBC both have filled gaps in their skeds with successful reality skeins. The Peacock is doing well with "The Biggest Loser" and "Deal or No Deal," while the Alphabet's Wednesday reality skeins have scored decent ratings at a fraction of the cost of scripted fare.

Shows not expected to resume production include "Bionic Woman" and "Journeyman"; both are currently considered canceled. NBC insiders remain high on "Life," though it likely won't be back before the summer or fall.

Equally murky are the futures of "Friday Night Lights" and "Las Vegas." Latter won't produce more episodes this season but is still on the bubble for renewal. NBC execs are looking for a way to bring back "FNL."

The future of Peacock reality hit "The Biggest Loser" is clearer. Net on Monday greenlit production on a sixth season of the show, which will likely air in the fall. "Loser" is from Reveille LLC, 25/7 Prods. and 3 Ball Prods.

CW

CW execs are looking to quickly gear up production on dramas "Smallville," "Gossip Girl," "One Tree Hill," "Reaper" and "Supernatural." Net wants at least five or six segs of each.

In the case of "Gossip Girl," CW may expand its order and relaunch the show in the summer. Serials from "Melrose Place" to "The OC" have thrived in the warm-weather months.

On the comedy front, CW is looking to crank out eight or nine more episodes of "The Game."

Newcomer "Aliens in America," which had completed 18 episodes before the strike, won't produce new episodes but remains in the hunt for a fall return. "Everybody Hates Chris" had wrapped production of a 22-episode season before the strike kicked in.

Another laffer that won't resume production is "Girlfriends." Even before the strike, there had been talk that this would be the show's last season; now CW has made it official.

Because the show won't be back, net isn't finishing production on a full 22-episode season. However, execs are talking to producers about a way to give the show a proper sendoff, perhaps via a clip show.

As for the confirmed dead, industry insiders said frosh drama "Life Is Wild" won't resume production and won't be back for a second season.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111798075...=1&nid=2562

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I called it. At least partially.

At least this lull has made my wife uninterested in House. One shit show down the drain...

House is the one of the best shows on tv. Now we can talk about Lost if you want to talk shit shows.

At least each episode of Lost is somewhat different.

What follows is the plot of every episode of House:

-person falls deathly ill for unknown reason

-treated for most obvious diagnosis: patient reacts badly

-House can't be bothered to stop playing guitar/popping pills/sticking his nose in relationships/being an asshole/bouncing a rubber ball against a wall to try and figure anything out.

-Patient almost dies because of House not being involved.

-House orders a round of tests and sends two understudies to patient's home to check for mold and shit

-Patient seemingly gets better then dips to near death again.

-Team looks at symptoms in a new way and tries mre shit that doesn't work

-House forces patient to admit they are lying by trying to kill them.

-Turns out it's a brain tumor (80% of the time)

If House is one of the best shows on TV then television is even more creatively bankrupt than I thought.

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I called it. At least partially.

At least this lull has made my wife uninterested in House. One shit show down the drain...

House is the one of the best shows on tv. Now we can talk about Lost if you want to talk shit shows.

At least each episode of Lost is somewhat different.

What follows is the plot of every episode of House:

-person falls deathly ill for unknown reason

-treated for most obvious diagnosis: patient reacts badly

-House can't be bothered to stop playing guitar/popping pills/sticking his nose in relationships/being an asshole/bouncing a rubber ball against a wall to try and figure anything out.

-Patient almost dies because of House not being involved.

-House orders a round of tests and sends two understudies to patient's home to check for mold and shit

-Patient seemingly gets better then dips to near death again.

-Team looks at symptoms in a new way and tries mre shit that doesn't work

-House forces patient to admit they are lying by trying to kill them.

-Turns out it's a brain tumor (80% of the time)

If House is one of the best shows on TV then television is even more creatively bankrupt than I thought.

Gentlemen! You're both pretty.

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I called it. At least partially.

At least this lull has made my wife uninterested in House. One shit show down the drain...

House is the one of the best shows on tv. Now we can talk about Lost if you want to talk shit shows.

At least each episode of Lost is somewhat different.

What follows is the plot of every episode of House:

-person falls deathly ill for unknown reason

-treated for most obvious diagnosis: patient reacts badly

-House can't be bothered to stop playing guitar/popping pills/sticking his nose in relationships/being an asshole/bouncing a rubber ball against a wall to try and figure anything out.

-Patient almost dies because of House not being involved.

-House orders a round of tests and sends two understudies to patient's home to check for mold and shit

-Patient seemingly gets better then dips to near death again.

-Team looks at symptoms in a new way and tries mre shit that doesn't work

-House forces patient to admit they are lying by trying to kill them.

-Turns out it's a brain tumor (80% of the time)

If House is one of the best shows on TV then television is even more creatively bankrupt than I thought.

You got a point, but it's the drama on how they get themselves out of the situation and the character of House. Also if you've ever been in and out of hospitals(like I have), than it's pretty cool at times to know what they're talking about.

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You got a point, but it's the drama on how they get themselves out of the situation and the character of House. Also if you've ever been in and out of hospitals(like I have), than it's pretty cool at times to know what they're talking about.

I see your point but you have to realize that this is the most fictionalized show about medicine EVER. A doctor-regardless of pedigree or renown-who acts in such a way would have their license stripped. Period. Not to mention the fact that his addiction being known in the hospital makes everybody who employs him and works under him as legally liable as him.

"Do no harm" is part of the Hippocratic Oath.

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You got a point, but it's the drama on how they get themselves out of the situation and the character of House. Also if you've ever been in and out of hospitals(like I have), than it's pretty cool at times to know what they're talking about.

I see your point but you have to realize that this is the most fictionalized show about medicine EVER. A doctor-regardless of pedigree or renown-who acts in such a way would have their license stripped. Period. Not to mention the fact that his addiction being known in the hospital makes everybody who employs him and works under him as legally liable as him.

"Do no harm" is part of the Hippocratic Oath.

Now, the addiction thing is something I could completely agree with you on. Any doctor, no matter how smart they are would not be allowed to head an entire team of doctors. But they have touched on the subject when that poilce officer or detective decided to look into his addiction.

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Series CBS Just Renewed For Next Season:

Big Bang Theory

Cold Case

Criminal Minds

CSI

CSI: Miami

CSI: New York

Ghost Whisperer

NCIS

Numb3rs

Two and A Half Men

Without A Trace

Series CBS Previously Renewed For Next Season:

The Amazing Race

Survivor

CBS Series Neither Cancelled Nor Renewed For Next Season:

Cane

How I Met Your Mother

Jericho

Moonlight

New Adventures of Old Christine

Rules of Engagement

Shark

The Unit

Welcome to the Captain

CBS announces its complete fall schedule in May.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111798095...mp;cs=1&p=0

I was really hoping the strike would finally get rid of the fall season premiers once and for all. Haven't they learned that we want new stuff all year, and not just in the fall?

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  • 3 months later...

Here we go again. Two articles about how films and TV are already being affected by a potential SAG strike.

Film:

As the clock ticks ever closer to the June 30 end of SAG's contract, the industry is nervously contemplating the possibility of yet another strike -- even as it admits that, at least in terms of film production, a de facto strike already exists.

The AMPTP, in what could be characterized as its lack-of-progress report issued Thursday, argued that a de facto strike "limiting the greenlighting of features and disrupting pilot production" already has begun. As one talent attorney observed: "No one is doing anything that finishes after June 30, (and) nobody's starting anything now. There is the impact of a strike already."

The threat of a stoppage has had an impact on production schedules at the major studios, which pushed a slew of projects into production back in April in order to complete filming by June 30.

DreamWorks is wrapping both John Hamburg's "I Love You, Man" and Peter Jackson's "The Lovely Bones" this week, while Paramount is aiming to finish principal photography during in the next two weeks on its untitled Wayans Bros. comedy, "G.I. Joe" and Martin Scorsese's "Shutter Island," starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Warners is finishing up shooting on Steven Soderbergh's "The Informant," its Seth Rogen starrer "Observe and Report" and the action pic "Ninja Assassin." Universal is racing the clock on "Land of the Lost," starring Will Ferrell. Disney's "Race to Witch Mountain," "When in Rome" and "High School Musical 3" are on track to be finished by month's end. And Columbia/MGM's latest Bond adventure "Quantum of Silence" is set to wrap next week.

United Artists is squeezing in the additional footage it's shooting on the Tom Cruise starrer "Valkyrie" before the witching hour strikes.

At the same time, a number of movies aiming for key 2009 release dates decided to risk potential disruption by moving forward anyway.

Columbia's "Angels and Demons," the follow-up to "The Da Vinci Code," already was forced to postpone production once when writer Akiva Goldsman could not turn in a script polish during the writers strike. With a release date moved from Dec. 19 to May 15, 2009, the film began shooting this month, with Tom Hanks and director Ron Howard on location in Rome. Crossing its fingers, Columbia is calculating that if a strike does force a shutdown, production can resume in time to make the spring release date.

Other big-budget productions have contingency plans in place.

DreamWorks/Paramount's "Transformers" sequel is before the cameras in Pennsylvania, with shooting eventually set to move to New Mexico. In the event of a strike, director Michael Bay figures he can shut down principal photography and focus on VFX and second unit work. Halcyon's "Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins," which is shooting exteriors in New Mexico now before moving to soundstages next month, is planning a similar strategy if its actors become unavailable.

In the case of Screen Gems' "Mardi Gras," which is shooting in New Orleans, the schedule has been arranged so that the final eight days of shooting, set for July, are all interiors and can be completed later in Los Angeles if a strike closes down the Louisiana shoot.

Several projects are set to begin filming in July but could be postponed.

At Warners, Clint Eastwood's "Gran Turino" is revving its engines for a proposed mid-July start in hopes that it will be ready for release by year's end. Disney's video game adaptation "Prince of Persia" and Columbia's disaster pic "2012" are moving forward with casting as they ready to shoot next month.

Other projects are awaiting a resolution before moving forward.

MGM has held off greenlighting its remake of "Fame" and "The Thomas Crown Affair 2," even though the Lion, trying to stage a comeback, hopes to begin rolling out new material by the end of 2009.

On the indie front, any strike would have less impact because SAG says it has already signed guaranteed completion agreements on more than 300 independently produced films that would allow them to keep working during a strike.

Among the more prominent projects are Oliver Stone's "W," the QED-financed pic shooting in Louisiana, with Josh Brolin George W. Bush; the Catherine Zeta Jones-toplined "The Rebound"; the Lindsay Lohan starrer "Labor Pains"; the Nicolas Cage remake "Bad Lieutenant"; and Nia Vardalos' "I Hate Valentine's Day."

A number of indie producers said they were able to land a higher cut of talent because of their ability to guarantee that actors will collect a paycheck this summer regardless of what happens at the bargaining table.

Newer stand-alone companies such as Overture and Summit largely will bypass the effects of the strike as well because of lighter production schedules or completion guarantees. While Summit has no films set to shoot in July, the sci-fi tale "Pandorum," which Overture will distribute in North America, is set to go before the cameras with financing from Germany's Constantin.

Overture and Par Vantage also are behind Michael Moore's sequel to "Fahrenheit 9/11." The movie is in production and is expected to continue shooting through the summer, but documentaries by and large won't be affected by any SAG labor action.

Because of disruptions that already have taken place, anxiety can be felt throughout the post community.

"We believe this will be worse than the WGA strike," said Stephen Buchsbaum, CEO of the Post Group. "During the WGA strike, we were doing projects that didn't involve the WGA -- some independent films, game shows and reality shows. Those all have SAG hosts, and unless there is a side deal struck, we believe this impact will be catastrophic.

"The post industry still has not recovered from the writers strike," he continued. "The industry has not come back, partly because TV season as we know it is still in limbo."

Unease also is growing in the visual effects community.

"I'm hearing about and seeing people being laid off or told hurry up and wait," Visual Effects Society executive director Eric Roth said. "It seems like there is already a strike."

This situation is further aggravated by the lurching global economy, weak dollar and increasing amount of VFX work heading to less expensive destinations.

"It's a recipe for the perfect storm at the worst possible time," Roth said.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/conten...2b96d86b46df742

TV:

Two of the biggest victims of the WGA strike -- the Television Critics Assn. press tour and the Beverly Hilton hotel -- might be among the first to face a fallout from a potential SAG strike.

In December, the winter TCA press tour at the Universal Hilton became the first major event to be canceled as a result of the writers strike. It was followed by the Golden Globes, whose last-minute cancellation dealt a financial blow to the Beverly Hilton, where the awards show has taken place for the past 34 years.

Now, the Beverly Hilton is slated to host the summer TCA press tour from July 8-22.

To protect itself from losing revenue during the height of the tourist season, the hotel has asked networks that are participating to sign their contacts by today.

The contracts apparently include a 30% kill fee "if participation is canceled due to a SAG strike." Also charging a 30% fee is equipment rental company SenovvA if networks cancel "on or after July 1," the day after SAG's current deal with the studios expires. Additionally, cable networks are said to be irked by a cancellation-fee request from CTAM, the organization that handles the cable portion of the press tour.

While it took TCA a month after the beginning of the WGA strike to call off its winter press tour while considering alternative ways of doing a strike-impacted version of it, the association already has made a decision to cancel the July tour and the TCA Awards in the event of a strike, TCA president Dave Walker said.

"Planning is ongoing," he said. "Obviously the situation in January applies in July, and if there's a strike, there won't be a tour. We don't have any contingency plans this time to do a strike tour."

On the series production side, it is ironic that "24" -- the show most impacted by the writers strike as its seventh season was scrapped by Fox -- is the best prepared to weather a SAG strike. With 12 episodes already in the can and the two-hour prequel set to wrap production by month's end, "24" is certain to air a full season.

In another reversal of fortune, multicamera sitcoms that were the first primetime series to go dark immediately after the beginning of the writers walkout are among the most strike-proof. Some of them, including Fox's " 'Til Death" and CBS' "Rules of Engagement" and "Project Gary," are under AFTRA's jurisdiction.

AFTRA also unionizes all actors on daytime dramas as well as such primetime series as HBO's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Flight of the Conchords," the CW's "Reaper" and CBS' "Harper's Island."

AFTRA reached a tentative agreement with the studios, but results of the ratification vote from its membership are not expected until July 9. But even if that deal is approved by AFTRA members despite appeals to the contrary from the SAG leadership, many wonder whether pressure from SAG would allow AFTRA actors to perform their duties during a SAG strike.

About two dozen broadcast series -- including "Heroes," "House," "Bones," "My Name Is Earl," "ER," "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "CSI: NY," "Criminal Minds," "Brothers & Sisters," "Chuck," "Dirty Sexy Money" and "Life" -- will have episodes in the can by July 1 as some stayed in continuous production or resumed shooting quickly because of the fallout of the writers strike. But there will be no finished product of such heavyweights as "Grey's Anatomy," "Desperate Housewives," "CSI: Miami" and "The Office," prompting speculation that networks might consider pushing the start of the 2008-09 season if there is a long SAG strike.

Cable series whose shooting schedules would be disrupted include USA's "The Starter Wife," "Monk," "Psych," "Burn Notice" and "Law & Order: CI," HBO's "Big Love," "Entourage" and "True Blood" and Showtime's "Weeds," "Brotherhood," "Dexter" and "Californication."

Late-night shows, which were hard hit by the writers strike, won't be affected much beyond talent booking, with Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" in best position because they rarely have actors as guests.

Most broadcast pilots, whose production was delayed until after the upfronts, are expected to wrap production by month's end.

Meanwhile, Media Rights Capital, which got a waiver during the WGA strike, is close to getting one for a potential SAG strike, clearing the path to production of its new shows, including the Sunday block on the CW and "Rita Rocks" for Lifetime.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/conten...b1db9ddc35cf7b6

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  • 4 weeks later...
SAG officially rejects final offer

SAG's still not ready to close a deal with the majors -- signaling that the thesps' contract stalemate will linger on into the late summer.

Guild on Thursday officially rejected the final offer by the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers on grounds that the pact falls short in such areas as new media and DVD residuals, along with product integration and force majeure protections.

"Today's meeting demonstrated that SAG's Membership First contingent unreasonably expects to obtain more in these negotiations than directors, writers and other actors obtained during their negotiations. AMPTP has already achieved four major labor agreements this year," the AMPTP said. "The refusal of SAG's Hollywood leadership to accept this offer is the latest in a series of actions by SAG leaders that, in our opinion, puts labor peace at risk."

At a Thursday afternoon meeting at AMPTP's Sherman Oaks HQ, the AMPTP responded to SAG's turn-down by calling on the guild to put the final offer to a vote of SAG's 120,000 members.

SAG's official rejection of the final offer and AMPTP's request for a membership vote sets the stage for a possible move by the majors to declare the sides to be at an impasse and impose the terms and conditions of the new offer.

AMPTP continues to assert that the SAG's insisting on sweeter terms than those achieved in the recent contracts ratified by DGA, WGA and SAG's rival AFTRA.

SAG's rejection came even though its strike threat has waned due to the ratification on Tuesday of AFTRA's primetime pact despite SAG's fervent lobbying of its 44,000 members who also belong to AFTRA. Because of the high hurdle SAG faces in getting 75% of its members to back a strike, speculation is mounting in the biz that studios may gamble on moving forward with new feature productions despite the uncertainty created by the SAG contract limbo.

SAG's previous contract expired on June 30.

In the days leading up to Thursday's meeting, SAG leaders had given every indication that the guild was going to spurn the AMPTPs deal. The congloms say their offer, made a few hours before SAG's contract expired last week, contains more than $250 million in pay increases over three years -- with terms matching the just-ratified AFTRA primetime deal.

SAG's rejection came two days after it lost leverage by failing to defeat the AFTRA deal, which was approved by 62% of those voting. And Thursday's rejection imperils the guild's prospects of obtaining an additional $10 million for members via a retroactivity provision that takes effect if the guild ratifies the deal by Aug. 15.

In addition, AFTRA's now free to cut into SAG jurisdiction by signing new TV shows shot on digital to its deal.

Although the majors may move soon to impose the new contract terms, there's a growing consensus that they may not opt to go with the impasse strategy. That route contains the potential drawback that SAG would probably be able to go to court and tie up implementation of the new terms and conditions.

Instead, the lack of resolution plus SAG's failure to defeat the AFTRA deal have led to a growing consensus among producers that SAG's not going to strike -- as long as the congloms don't inflame the situation by locking out actors.

For SAG, the 75% support required in a strike authorization vote is a longshot given the worsening economy, the lingering hangover from the WGA strike and SAG's inability to persuade enough of its 44,000 members who also belong to AFTRA to vote down that deal. A strike authorization vote would take about three weeks.

Producers had pulled the plug on most film shooting by June 30 due to the uncertainty over a SAG strike.

But more than a dozen TV series and pilots remained in production along with some of the 355 indie features that signed guild waivers -- and with SAG looking unlikely to strike, that activity may begin returning to normal levels sooner rather than later.

One attraction for companies pondering that route at this point: productions would be shot under the less expensive terms and conditions of the expired SAG deal.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111798877...=1&nid=2562

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  • 3 months later...
The Screen Actors Guild could go on strike before the end of November.

In a message sent to members late Thursday, SAG president Alan Rosenberg and national exec director Doug Allen told members that the national board will meet next weekend on the question of whether to conduct a strike authorization over SAG's master contract on features and primetime. If the national board approves, the leaders said than SAG will then need 30 to 45 days to hold such a vote among members.

"If 75% of the qualified SAG members who vote in the referendum support the strike authorization, only then can the national board of directors call an actual work stoppage, should the board decide that it has become necessary to do so," Rosenberg and Allen said in the missive.

The duo noted that it was "important" to note that if passed by a majority of the national board, the resolution does not call a strike. "It only provides for a membership referendum to be conducted, which will take approximately 30 to 45 days," they said.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111799381...=1&nid=2562

So we'll end up with a repeat of last year then? What new shows will get canceled this time?

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Actors will vote on strike

The cloud of labor unrest hanging over Hollywood and the upcoming awards season has grown considerably darker.

Although no date has been set, SAG leadership has begun preparations for a strike-authorization vote after two days of meetings with the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers failed to break the 5-month-old deadlock on a new TV/theatrical contract.

The talks, brokered by federal mediator Juan Carlos Gonzalez, ended shortly before 1 a.m. Saturday.

"We will now launch a full-scale education campaign in support of a strike-authorization referendum," SAG said. "We will further inform our members about the core, critical issues unique to actors that remain in dispute."

In response to SAG's decision to seek strike authorization, the AMPTP said, "SAG is bizarrely asking its members to bail out the failed negotiating strategy with a strike vote -- at a time of historic economic crisis. The tone deafness of SAG is stunning."

The studios' bargaining arm sent a blistering message to its 300 members, placing the blame on SAG and indicating that it would do everything it could to educate SAG members and the industry about its offer to the actors union and why SAG should accept it.

"The more SAG members understand about the fairness and strength of our offer, especially during a time of historic economic distress, the less likely they will be to authorize a strike," the message stated.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/conten...72e3ea9b18c7009

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