WGA-ATA Showdown

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…

UPDATED with Goodman and Nagy reaction: David A. Goodman has been re-elected president of the WGA West, defeating opposition candidate Phyllis Nagy in a landslide. His re-election, in a record turnout, is a solid endorsement of the guild's five-month-long agency campaign, which was the main issue in the race. It could…

Candidates for the WGA West's board of directors are almost evenly divided between those who want to stay the course and those who want a course correction in the guild's ongoing fight with Hollywood's talent agencies. All 17 candidates vying for eight open seats on the board make reasoned, and often elegant…

Marjorie David, vice president of the WGA West, says the guild is "operating in good faith" to resolve the ongoing feud with Hollywood's talent agencies, and believes it will be in good shape going into next year's negotiations with the studios for a new film and TV contract as long as members stay united. "Our…

Marc Guggenheim, opposition candidate for the WGA West board of directors, has floated a proposed solution to the guild's 20-week standoff with Hollywood's talent agencies: Writers and agents would share packaging fees 50-50 after the agents are "made whole" from the 10% commissions they give up in packaged deals…

Jason Fuchs, an opposition candidate for the WGA West's board of directors, is urging members to take another look at a proposal from the Association of Talent Agents about sharing revenue from their packaging fees. When their last round of bargaining broke off June 7, the ATA offered to share 2% of their backend fees…

UPDATED with David Goodman response: ICM Partners has accused the WGA of dropping the lawsuit it had filed in state court against the Big 4 talent agencies because "WGA leadership knew their lawsuit against the agencies was about to be found baseless and be dismissed." The agency on Tuesday claimed the guild dropped…