The third day of renewed talks between the Writers Guild of America and Hollywood studios did not yield a new deal, but talks will continue on Saturday, WGA told members in a memo Friday night.
“The WGA and AMPTP met for bargaining on Friday and will meet again on Saturday,” WGA told members. “Thank you for the wonderful show of support on the picket lines today! It means so much to us as we continue to work toward a deal that writers deserve.”
TheWrap has learned that there are good signs that a deal will be reached, and that WGA is being very deliberate during this late stage of negotiations to ensure terms are satisfactory.
As was the case on Thursday, talks between the Writers Guild, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, and several major studio CEOs extended into the evening hours.
While studio insiders say there was hope on their side to get a deal done by the end of the week, the guild sought further talks on some key areas on Thursday that the studios thought were resolved. The WGA negotiating committee has said in memos to its members prior to the start of this week’s talks that it “does not intend to leave anyone behind” when negotiating contract terms.
An individual with knowledge of the situation told TheWrap that despite the fact that a deal remains to be clinched, there was “good progress” made during the marathon talks and that both sides were engaged.
The WGA strike has lasted 144 days, 10 days short of the record for the longest entertainment industry strike set by the WGA in 1988. Turnout was strong on the picket lines on Friday as the guild’s negotiating committee and strike captains urged members to show up in numbers for what may have been the final day of strike action.
