Can’t we all just get along?
It’s Day 4 of the writers strike and the news doesn’t look good for TV fans.
In addition to the shows I listed in my previous blog, producers say the writers strike has now claimed the Fox thriller “24.” Executives at Fox say they have removed the show from its midseason schedule. Producers say the show will return when it can air uninterrupted.
Like most series written by members of the Writers Guild of America, “24” simply doesn’t have enough scripts to sustain a full season. Which means programming execs have had to do some creative manipulating with TV schedules.
As it stands now, Fox’s revised schedule calls for “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles” to have a two-night premiere Jan. 13-14, 2008. Then, “American Idol” returns on January 15th and a new game show, “The Moment of Truth,” premieres January 23rd. Fox programming execs did stress that its revised schedule was subject to further change, if strike developments warrant.
For those of you who have been living under a rock, WGA writers went on strike Monday after negotiations between them and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers ended unsuccessfully. As of today no new negotiations were scheduled to resolve the main sticking point between writers and producers: a fair cut of the profits made from DVDs and shows offered on the Internet.
Yesterday some familiar faces joined writers on the picket lines. Stars such as Steve Carell from “The Office,” John Stamos from NBC’s “ER,” and Sally Field from ABC’s hit drama “Brothers and Sisters” picked up signs and walked alongside the people who write the scripts they bring to life on screen.
Greg Daniels, executive producer of the “The Office,” told news reporters that filming stopped on the show after Carell refused to cross picket lines. And another interesting note: a number of writers and actors from “The Office” used their time on the picket line in a rather unique way—-they shot a video of the protestors and posted it on YouTube.