In the Midst of the WGA Strike, Shonda Rhimes Expresses Her Support for Writers | THR News - video Dailymotion

In this video, hear the Shondaland's CEO and mega-producer's thoughts on the current WGA strike.

Transcript

00:00In the midst of the WGA strike, showrunner Shonda Rhimes is showing her support for writers.

00:06The Shondaland CEO and mega producer spoke briefly about her stance on the strike

00:10during a fireside chat after receiving a BAFTA special award on Wednesday night in New York.

00:16Writers Guild of America members began striking on Tuesday after the Guild and the Alliance of

00:20Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to reach a new deal by the May 1st deadline.

00:26During the chat, Rhimes responded to a question about if she supported striking writers

00:30and what she would say to fellow scribes who spent the last two days on the picket lines.

00:35The prominent writer, producer and creator said,

00:37I really wish that we didn't have to be on strike and I feel the pain of the people who are dealing

00:42with the strike. But for me, for writers to get paid for what they do in a fair way is far more

00:47important. To have somebody devalue art, it's bad enough as it is right now. That's happening

00:52everywhere. But for writers to not be able to make a living wage while making a television show

00:56or making a movie is a problem. The comments from Rhimes, who expanded her deal with Netflix in 2021,

01:03came just hours before her Bridgerton spinoff, Queen Charlotte, was set to release on Netflix.

01:08Writers picketed outside of Netflix's New York headquarters as part of a series of protests.

01:12During Wednesday's protests, Cynthia Nixon, Bowen Yang, and Alana Glazer were among the notable faces

01:17who showed their support. As part of the writer's strike, the WGA has called on studios to not only

01:23increase pay for writers, but institute staffing requirements, better residuals, and shorter

01:28exclusivity deals, both issues that have cropped up since the rise of streaming. For more updates to

01:33this story, head to THR.com. And for the latest entertainment news and updates, keep watching

01:39The Hollywood Reporter News.