11,500 TV writers are striking right now. This is what it means for your favourite shows.

For the first time in more than 15 years, Hollywood's writers are going on strike.

It kicked off this week after the Writer's Guild of America announced that its 11,500 members would stop working. The strike comes down to a pay dispute after negotiations broke down between production companies, streaming giants and the unions. 

'Why should we care?' some might be asking themselves. And fair enough. 

In reality, a strike like this has ramifications for audiences too — impacting some of our favourite TV shows. In fact, we saw it 15 years ago when a similar strike occurred, which wreaked havoc on the industry and resulted in a slew of iconic TV shows being cancelled or having their seasons shortened.

And there's every chance history could repeat itself.

Watch the thousands of writers at the picket lines. Post continues below.

First a bit of background, why are TV writers striking?

TV writers are the backbone of Hollywood. No doubt about it.

Although the celebrities we see on screen are the highest-paid people in the world, the people who write their scripts, characters and plotlines are pretty much paid peanuts in comparison.

This week the Writer's Guild of America (WGA) called for the strikes. Now the WGA's 11,500+ members have taken their demands to the streets, calling for fairer compensation. 

Pictures have since gone viral online of hundreds of strikers picketing on the doorsteps of some of Hollywood's biggest production companies and streaming giants. 

The writers strike picket line outside of Warner Bros. in Los Angeles. https://t.co/2mx1TyHf1T pic.twitter.com/sBeOvNcPBZ

— Variety (@Variety) May 2, 2023

Essentially, the WGA is seeking changes in pay and the formulas used to compensate writers when their work is streamed. 

Interestingly, the rise of streaming has had a negative effect on their earnings, as they earn less for working on streamed TV series as opposed to traditional broadcast shows. And considering more and more shows are turning to streaming, it's left the writers in a bit of a financial pickle.

Also, writers are paid per episode — where a broadcast series once produced 22 or more instalments each season, streaming series are more typically eight to 13 episodes. Residuals or royalties, which earn writers money after a TV show's debut when it airs or streams elsewhere, are lower for streaming shows than for broadcast shows too.

As co-host of The Spill and Mamamia's Head of Entertainment Laura Brodnik said on the podcast: "In the age of streaming, the way writers get paid hasn't caught up with the industry. What the writers are saying is that the networks and the streaming services are benefitting off the writer's art but they're not getting paid for it."

You can listen to this conversation on The Spill below. Post continues after audio.

What TV shows are being impacted right now?

Simply put... a lot. 

Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers and others depend on writers to produce shows the day they air — as a result, all of these shows have shut down and reruns are filling the time slots. 

The Kelly Clarkson Show has also shut down, along with NBC's Saturday Night Live, which has three episodes scheduled for May which won't go ahead. This means former cast member Pete Davidson won't be returning to host — so no new Kim Kardashian tea will be spilt after their Met Gala run in this week.

If you're having a sick day and feel like watching some good ol' daytime soap operas — you're out of luck, because they'll soon be going dark too.

Return dates for Law & Order and Golden Globes-winning Abbott Elementary are also up in the air. The writer's room for season three of Yellowjackets has also been impacted, along with Netflix's Cobra Kai.

Ultimately, we don't know when the strike will be halted, or if their pay requests will be met. And considering the last strike went on for 100 days, this strike has the potential to impact two iconic shows as new seasons of The Last of Us and The White Lotus could be affected, as they are very close to production time.

Image: Getty.

What have Hollywood's leading actors had to say about the WGA strikes?

A bunch of well-known actors have since turned out to back the striking writers, along with successful directors.

Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, the Oscar-winning directors and writers of Everything Everywhere All At Once, joined dozens of people walking picket lines in front of Netflix's headquarters in Hollywood.

Rob Lowe said while at a strike: "I support the writers because as actors we are only as good as the writing we get."

'I came out to support the writers because, as actors, we're only as good as the writing we get' — Actor Rob Lowe came out to show support at a WGA picket line in Los Angeles on the first day of the writers' strike on Tuesday pic.twitter.com/GBIGGSZOVA

— NowThis (@nowthisnews) May 4, 2023

And Just Like That and Sex and the City star Cynthia Nixon was also spotted at a WGA strike in New York, saying: "I feel like it's important to be out here because writers are some of my best friends and some of my heroes."

Cynthia Nixon at #WritersStrike in NYC today: “I feel like it’s important to be out here because writers are some of my best friends and some of my heroes...” pic.twitter.com/VxrRNiCMvF

— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) May 3, 2023

The list of names supporting the movement goes on — Amanda Seyfried, Jay Leno, Jimmy Fallon, Quinta Brunson, Olivia Wilde, Mindy Kaling and more.

Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers have also said they will personally cover an extra week of compensation for their writers during the WGA strike.

What impact did the last strike have 15 years ago?

In 2007 to 2008, the WGA writers were on strike for 100 days, bringing the entertainment industry to a crashing halt.

Hundreds of TV shows that were either relatively new or on the precipice of being released were cancelled, and popular shows had their seasons majorly shortened. Ultimately, the 100-day strike was estimated to have cost the Los Angeles economy alone $US2.5 billion. 

And the financial impact of this current strike is already being felt too.

I’m no economist, but since the WGA went on strike YESTERDAY, the studios have lost almost $10 billion in value, enough to fund every ask the writers made for 25 years pic.twitter.com/2cRFmZpmkb

— Zack Bornstein (@ZackBornstein) May 3, 2023

Some of our favourite shows impacted at the time included Gossip Girl, Big Bang Theory, Breaking Bad, the CSI and NCIS franchises, House, The Office US and more. 

The quality of the films and TV shows that were released during that time also lessened. Daniel Craig famously said his Bond movie Quantum of Solace suffered because the script was not ready when the strike was called.

If the strike continues, it could delay the most important time for TV writing, which is May and June. Networks will also increasingly fill their programming lineups with unscripted reality shows — and there are only so many Bachelor spinoffs and attempts we as audiences can handle.

So will the production and streaming giants finally pay the writers what they're asking for? Or will they play the long game and wait for the writers to crack, given many are striking without pay? It's the question everyone wants answered — but only time will tell.

Feature Image: Getty/Twitter @jjrotten.