Hollywood Braces for Contract Talks as Writers Seek Gains in Streaming, AI Protections

Nearly three years after a 148-day strike disrupted the film and television industry, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) is preparing for a new round of contract negotiations with the major studios. As the current contract nears its expiration on May 1, 2026, union leaders are signaling a willingness to fight for improvements in healthcare, streaming residuals, and protections against the use of artificial intelligence (AI).

WGA Priorities: Healthcare, Residuals, and AI

WGA West President Michele Mulroney emphasized the union’s resolve, stating, “Our members have shown many times that they’re willing to fight for what we need as a collective group, and there’s no exception here.”

Key priorities for the WGA include:

• Healthcare Plan Funding: Increasing the caps on company contributions to the union’s healthcare plan, which has remained unchanged for two decades, while writer employment has fluctuated.
• Streaming Residuals: Boosting residuals for writers in the streaming era, as traditional revenue models have shifted.
• AI Protections: Expanding protections against the unauthorized use of writers’ work in the development and training of AI models.

Studios’ Financial Position and Writer Compensation

Ellen Stutzman, the WGA’s executive director, argues that studios have successfully adapted to the streaming landscape and are financially capable of providing a fair deal for writers. She pointed to the financial activity of major players like Netflix and Paramount, noting significant investments and revenue growth.

“Writers are watching as Netflix and Paramount are fighting it out to acquire Warner Bros… Paramount is spending $81 billion,” said Stutzman. “There’s money for a fair deal for writers.”

AI Concerns and the Future of Writing

The rise of AI is a central concern for the WGA. While the 2023 agreement established that AI is not a writer and its outputs are not considered literary material, writers are increasingly worried about how studios might leverage their work to train AI models. Disney’s $1 billion investment in OpenAI’s Sora platform has heightened these concerns.

John August, co-host of the “Scriptnotes” podcast and WGA negotiating committee co-chair, explained that AI models are being trained on existing intellectual property, including scripts written by WGA members. “AI is using [studios’] IP, which is stuff that we wrote to license these models,” August said. “With the Sora deal, it seems clear that the companies intend to monetize this IP for use with AI.”

August emphasized that writers deserve compensation if their work is used to generate AI outputs, stating, “If you’re taking the work that we created to generate AI outputs, we are owed money. They’re using our work to do something down the road.”

AMPTP’s Response and Outlook

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) expressed its commitment to a constructive bargaining process. In a statement, a spokesperson said they “look forward to engaging in a constructive and collaborative bargaining process with the WGA” and are “confident we can reach balanced solutions that support talented writers while sustaining the long-term success and stability of our industry and its workforce.”

Mulroney expressed hope that lessons were learned from the 2023 strike and that the AMPTP will approach the negotiations seriously. “It provides stability for the companies and for our membership. It’s better for everybody.”

The WGA is initiating negotiations shortly after SAG-AFTRA, the actors’ union, began its bargaining sessions. The AMPTP recently extended negotiations with SAG-AFTRA for another seven days.