By Abigail Brandwein
After 2023, television enthusiasts noticed a significant depletion in the quality of their favorite shows. From Yellowjackets to Family Guy to Stranger Things, the production and screenplay of movies and shows across platforms quickly became sloppy. These setbacks were due to an industry writer’s strike – during which 11,500 screenwriters protested for improved contracts.
Between May 2nd and September 27th, 2023, labor disputes between the Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) resulted in a major industry strike. For many television shows, the protest meant long pauses in production, delayed filming, casting issues, and, most prominently, lazy writing.
The first genre of TV to be affected was late-night and talk shows, which were forced to air reruns throughout the period of the strike. Programs like The Tonight Show, Real Time with Bill Maher, and Saturday Night Live heavily rely on writers for jokes and sketches, meaning they have no backlog of content, and as a result of the strike their production had to stop immediately. According to the Los Angeles Times, for these shows, the writers’ crucial role in generating relevant and timely subject matter was highlighted for viewers.
Scripted shows, such as Yellowjackets or Family Guy, were affected by the strike later, as they were able to complete their written seasons while the strike progressed. But once the pre-written scripts were used and filmed, the release of new seasons became slower, and the overall quality of the programs subsided.
Notably, over winter break, season 5 of Stranger Things aired, and received an overload of negative feedback due to myriad plot holes and cringe-worthy dialogue. The season had a 480 million dollar budget, and long-time fans were upset about the quality of writing the show displayed.
“Season 5 was disappointing”, said Sigal Edo, a junior at Irvington High School. “Compared to the first four seasons, it seemed rushed and thoughtless”. Additionally, the new season took over 3 years to produce with a nearly half billion dollar budjet, causing further backlash against the final product.
The outcome of the strike, though benefitting WGA staff by upgrading their contracts, damaged the retention of many live talk shows and left many long running shows with lackluster scripts, slower and worse production value, and overall substandard storylines.
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