With the Golden Globes and Oscars coming up, it’s been unclear if the WGA would participate in the events at all. It’s looking more and more like that’s not going to happen… however there is a glimmer of hope.
The Writers Guild of America has turned down requests for waivers for Oscars and the Golden Globes. WGA West president Patric Verrone rejected the requests Monday, due to the guild’s seven-week strike against studios and networks. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences had asked for permission from the WGA for use of clips during the Feb. 24 Oscar telecast. Dick Clark Prods. and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association had requested a waiver to allow writers to work on the Jan. 13 awards show.
However, all is not yet lost. Since the WGA has announced that they will try to negotiate with individual studios as opposed to the umbrella producers association (a stupid thing to say, and it will never work), it does open the door that an individual production like The Golden Globes or the Oscars may be able to individually negotiate some sort of agreement for a 1 time event broadcast. I’m not really hopeful that will happen… but it is still a possibility.
Personally, I don’t think the WGA should do it. If you’re on strike, then be on strike and don’t work on those shows or allow any concessions for your work. It’s no secret that I disagree with some of the WGA’s issues… and I think in general they’re fighting for totally the wrong thing (I think they should be fighting for more money… but not for the outdated and crippled residual system they’re perpetuating).
Also, I think it might be a refreshing thing to see the Oscars without all the fluff for once. Here’s a thought… make the awards show about the AWARDS (SHOCK!). Let Stewart do his monolog (I don’t know off hand if he’s in the WGA or not) and then for just 1 night out of the year, let the work and merit of the medium be celebrated by handing out the awards without all the production to go along with it. I don’t know if that would be better or worse… but the Oscar broadcast has become so bloated, I think it might be a good thing to try. Just a thought.
Source: Variety
