The Hollywood screenwriters’ strike is not giving truce and it seems that it will go on for an indefinite period of time. Called on the first day of May, this demand seeks better conditions for writers of Hollywood films and series, and also fights against new threats such as Artificial Intelligence.
We have already seen some of the consequences of this strike, such as the cancellations of Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon’s shows. But now it has reached more serious repercussions that could affect producers and fans alike.
Specifically, two very interesting productions with a large following have been paused: Severance and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, the new Game of Thrones spin-off. In the case of Severance, it is a very successful Apple TV+ series that confirmed its second season recently. However, its production has had to be halted due to a lack of resources for the screenwriters.
Likewise is the case with A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Although it may be a new golden goose for HBO Max -or, rather, for Max-, the platform has had no choice but to pause the project until everything is cleared up. In the end, it is still in the development process, and without scriptwriters to carry it through, it becomes impossible to go ahead with the production.
But they have not been the only productions to be paralyzed. So has the last season of Stranger Things and Blade, the Marvel Studios movie that will star Mahershala Ali as the vampire once played by Wesley Snipes. The situation, in fact, is escalating, so there could be many more series and movies affected.
HBO has fired David Simon, creator of The Wire
But the worst news in this regard has been, undoubtedly, the dismissal of David Simon by HBO. The showrunner of The Wire, The Deuce, Treme and The Plot Against America had been working with the platform for 25 years in the development of new productions. However, after joining the writers’ strike, they decided to terminate his contract.
On the day HBO called me to suspend my contract after 25 years of writing TV for them, I was doing the right thing.
The situation doesn’t seem to be under much control, and the consequences could be disastrous. The last writers’ strike, which ran for four months between 2007 and 2008, resulted in a $2 billion loss to the State of California. And that was not the only bad thing that happened: series and movies had to be shot without the support of the writers, and obscenities such as the second season of Heroes or X-Men Origins: Wolverine came out of it.
Will it affect the second season of House of the Dragon?
On the development of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, George RR Martin himself has spoken. First, to take a position in favor of the strike and to ask for reflection from the producers. And, second, to explain what is happening with the new series about the world he created:
“Maybe the AMPTP members will come to their senses tomorrow and offer some meaningful concessions, and it can all be wrapped up next week. However, I wouldn’t bet on it. I have been through several such strikes since I started writing for television and film in 1986. The 1988 strike, the first one I was part of, lasted 22 weeks, the longest in Hollywood history. The 2007-2008 strike, the most recent, lasted 100 days. This one may last longer. The issues are more important, and I’ve never seen the union as united as it is now.”
Finally, the writer made clear in the statement on his website what is the status of House of the Dragon, a series that does go ahead and that in principle is not affected by the strike:
“The scripts for the eight season episodes were finished months ago, long before the strike began. Each episode has gone through four or five drafts and numerous rounds of revisions, to address HBO’s notes, my notes, budget concerns, etc. There will be no further revisions. The writers have done their job; the rest is in the hands of the directors, cast and crew…and, of course, the dragons.”
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