UPDATED, 8:33 PM: They are almost certain to take it down to the wire and no one is counting out a strike yet, but there is “progress” in tonight’s WGA and AMPTP talks, we hear.
According to sources on both sides, the past few hours has seen some positive movement on a variety of the core issues between the scribes and the producers. “We know everyone is waiting for a clear sign, but there is still a long way to go,” one insider close to the studios told Deadline.
“This is going right until midnight,” promised a scribe, spurning the notion that there could be an extension of the talks. However, others say an extension still could happen in what a further source termed “a fluid but intense” night of negotiations still to come.
Whatever the outcome, check back with Deadline for the latest updates on Tinseltown’s labor brinkmanship.
PREVIOUSLY, 4:27 PM: With hours left on the clock before the current WGA contract expires, “things are not looking good,” an insider with ties to scribes tells Deadline.
While there is a chance production offices across town won’t be shut down tomorrow morning and picket lines won’t go up, a source close to the studios also wasn’t optimistic about a writers strike being averted. “We tried to make progress with our last proposal, but the other side is not receptive it seems,” the executive lamented.
After positive signs over the weekend, including an increased offer by producers reps the AMPTP for employer contributions to the health plan of more than $85 million over three years, negotiators for the studios and WGA have been sequestered since 11 AM today at the AMPTP headquarters in Sherman Oaks, CA after a rare Sunday bargaining session. There also was reportedly a move made in the area of compensation for writers employed on short-order TV series – one of the WGA’s main priorities in the talks.
Despite the progress, the two sides are not closing in on a deal, sources cautioned today.
There is still time — the current WGA contract does not expire until midnight PT tonight, and the two sides could conceivably opt for a short-term extension (usually by 24 hours) if they are close enough to the finish line.