WGA-ATA Showdown

EXCLUSIVE, UPDATED with WGA statement: The Big Three talent agencies, locked in an antitrust lawsuit with the WGA, have asked a federal judge to temporarily stay discovery on certain documents sought by the guild, saying there is a "clear possibility" the guild's counterclaims against them will be dismissed. On…

UPDATED with additional info, full franchise agreement: Paradigm Talent Agency has signed a new franchise agreement with the Writers Guild of America, and will be able to resume representation of its WGA-represented writer clients immediately. The deal was announced by Paradigm chairman and CEO Sam Gores. Paradigm…

The WGA said Friday that "over the past few months, the guild has provided guidance on over a hundred individual deals to members who have found themselves without their normal advisors due to the agency campaign." In its latest membership update on its 10½-month battle with the major talent agencies, the guild reporte…

WGA president David A. Goodman told members Friday that the guild has had "substantive discussion with all but one" of the five biggest talent agencies about making deals that could end the guild's 10-month battle over packaging fees, adding that "those we have spoken to have said directly to me they would like to…

UPDATED with more details: Innovative Artists has joined the list of agencies that have signed a deal with the Writers Guild of America. With the signing, the Association of Talent Agents, which has been at loggerheads with the WGA since last April, now has three members of its 16-member board of directors whose…

UPDATED with WGA and ATA statements and more details: Another full-service agency and Association of Talent Agents member, APA, has reached a deal with the WGA. The agency, which immediately will resume its representation of writers, also said it will bring the Television and Motion Picture Literary businesses…

UPDATED with details, full text of agreement: A major development in the standoff between the WGA and the agencies: Gersh has become the first major full-service talent agency to sign a franchise agreement with the WGA. It will immediately resume representation of writers. The agreement comes after months of…

Friday's scheduled hearing on the Big 3 talent agencies' motions to dismiss the WGA's antitrust suit against them has been rescheduled for January 24. U.S. District Court Judge Andre Birotte Jr. gave no reason for the one-week postponement. Earlier this month, the judge denied the WGA's motion to dismiss the agencies'…

UPDATED with WGA and agencies’ statements, more info: A federal judge has denied the WGA’s motion to dismiss antitrust lawsuits filed by Hollywood agencies CAA, WME and UTA against the guild. The ruling (read it here) by U.S. District Court Judge Andre Birotte Jr. formally denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss, or…

The long standoff between the WGA and the Big Three talent agencies could go on much longer. The two sides in a court filing Friday have proposed a trial start date of March 2021 for their legal showdown that has already lasted more than eight months. The filing, which includes a scheduling worksheet (read it here)…

EXCLUSIVE, updated with statements from David Simon and WGA East, 3:45 PM: Writer-producer David Simon, the outspoken critic of TV packaging who in April joined the WGA's anti-packaging lawsuit against Hollywood's Big Four talent agencies, has dismissed his individual claims against CAA, in which he'd accused his…

The Abrams Artists Agency has signed the WGA's Code of Conduct, making it the third mid-tier agency to break ranks with the Association of Talent Agents and sign the code since the guild ordered all of its members seven months ago to fire their agents who refused to sign it. The code bans packaging fees after one year…