After 148 days on strike, the WGA strike is finally over. The Writer’s Guild of America declared the strike officially over at 12:01 AM after they came to a “tentative agreement” with the AMPTP after months of negotiation. Now, Casey Bloys, CEO of HBO and Max Content, has become the first company executive to publicly address the end of the strike, saying that he’s “happy it’s past us” in a statement from the Code Conference.
WGA Strike Ends: Casey Bloys Says He’s “Happy It’s Over”
The Writer’s Guild of America strike began at 12:01 AM May 2nd, 2o23. On September 27th, WGA leadership officially voted to end the strike at 12:01 AM after negotiators finally reached a “tentative agreement” with the AMPTP. After months of standstill, film and TV executives are understandably eager to get back to work and continue making money, but HBO and Max Content CEO Casey Bloys has become the first executive to address the end of the strike publicly.
Giving a statement at the Code Conference in Dana Point, California, Bloys said that he’s happy the strike is over and “happy it’s past us”, according to Deadline.
I’m happy that everybody appears to be very happy with the deal that they got. I want everybody to feel that they’ve gotten a good deal and are ready to get back to work.”
CEO Casey Bloys
As the TV and film industries move forward after the strike, there’s been some speculation that the strike might change the kinds of content we’ll see coming out of the streaming platforms that were most affected by the strike. For his part, Casey Bloys has said that the WGA strike won’t change the kind of content HBO is looking to order, stating that “a good show is a good show” regardless of the strike.
Bloys did state, however, that he’s glad the strike didn’t last through the end of the year, and that he understands that everything is “not business as usual” for the industry as a whole.
There’s a lot changing and shifting. We’re coming out of a [Covid] bubble that we’re still dealing with the fallout from. It’s an uncertain time, it’s a scary time. There’s a lot changing so it’s not business as usual.”
CEO Casey Bloys
More information on the WGA strike and the new agreement can be found here.
