Source: Multiple outlets, but I'm citing THR for this thread
The WGA strike has reached the upper echelon of overall deals at Warner Bros. Television Group.
Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that the studio has suspended a number of overall deals for its top creatives including J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot, Greg Berlanti, Chuck Lorre, Bill Lawrence and Mindy Kaling.
Reps for WBTVG declined to comment.
The news comes as the Writers Guild of America has entered the fourth month of its strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers over such issues as residuals, AI and streaming transparency.
The move is similar to lower-level writer deals that had been suspended during the first month of the strike in May as studios immediately paused deals for scribes who went on strike. With this batch of mega-producers, the impact now affects them as producers. While none of them had been working as writers, they were contractually obligated to continue working in their capacity as producers. All five prolific producers are behind multiple shows and all have development projects at the studio that they had been working on.
From Variety:
Some writer/producers also double as DGA members and directors on their projects; because the DGA sealed a new deal with the AMPTP and has not been on strike, those duties have still been allowed during these recent months.
But production has been almost completely shut down since SAG-AFTRA joined WGA members on the picket line in July. Once talent is no longer able to render services, the policy is generally to suspend deals.
Such a deal suspension is different from overall terminations, which so far have not been widely seen in the industry — even though the writers strike has 90-day mark when, historically, dealmakers have the option to kill agreements in the face of an "act of God" (the common show business interpretation for how the phrase "force majeure" applies to these type of labor shutdowns).
Overall deals typically pay overhead for a writer's company and fund the development of projects. First-look deals also provide financial padding and, in return, guarantee that the studio or company has favored nation status when it comes to determining potential distribution of a series or film.
