The WGA has finalized its tentative agreement with the major studios as of February 10, 2008. The WGA West board of directors and the WGA East Council will meet today to formally endorse the contract. And writers could be back at work as early Monday. Leaders of the WGA made the announcement of the finalized deal early Saturday after spending much of Friday meeting with lawyers over the contract language. WGA West president Patric Verrone and WGA East prexy Michael Winship sent a message to members that stressed the gains made in the new-media sector.
Verrone and Winship said in the message that the time has come to end the strike and cited the “enormous personal toll on our members and countless others.”
“As such, we believe that continuing to strike now will not bring sufficient gains to outweigh the potential risks and that the time has come to accept this contract and settle the strike,” they said. “Much has been achieved, and while this agreement is neither perfect nor perhaps all that we deserve for the countless hours of hard work and sacrifice, our strike has been a success.”
The finalized deal came a week after the Feb. 1 breakthrough in informal talks between WGA leaders — Verrone, negotiating committee chief John Bowman and WGA West exec director David Young — with News Corp. president Peter Chernin and Disney topper Robert Iger.
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I will be updating the auditions and casting information as soon as it is released. There will be a flood of casting taking place for the television shows that have been on hold due to the strike. Stay Tuned!