New data reveals most vulnerable production companies hit by writers strike

The Writers Guild of America strike is midway through its second week, with one company after another announcing delays and new strategies in the development of upcoming projects.

The Hollywood screenwriters union voted almost unanimously to strike following unmet demands surrounding payment structure and the use of Artificial Intelligence in the industry. The strike took effect Monday, May 1 at midnight.

Many companies are more than willing to hop full-on into the implementation of AI, while others remain adamant that human scriptwriting is essential.

New data reveals strike impact levels

A recent examination from VarietyVIP+ into what entertainment companies have and are projected to be affected by the strike reveals the overall impact of the value of writers’ work in the industry.

According to the publication, production houses and streaming giants that solicited scripts in advance will do better than those that will have to ad-hoc scripts post-strike.

The analysis revealed how reliant US production and streaming are on scripted content — the chief question as a result of the strike.

The study looks at the volume of scripted comedy and drama compared to unscripted genres like documentaries, true crime, reality, pop culture, and lifestyle in the context of a projected 100 days (which was how long the 2007-2008 strike lasted).

It is based on primetime scripted and unscripted television content and excludes children’s content.

Low strike impact

A&E Networks: mostly unscripted content.

Warner Bros. Discovery( low-medium impact): largest publisher of American unscripted content, with scripted cable content making up only seven percent.

Medium strike impact

Amazon: more scripted, but more features than just streaming services with the greater Amazon Prime service.

AMC Networks: broadcasts program originals only one night a week, so not much of a difference.

Lionsgate: has a large film library, with 10 scripted originals in 2022.

NBC Universal: able to outsource licensed content from affiliate Peacock, while cable broadcast is mainly unscripted.

Netflix: includes global content, not relying only on American talent.

High strike impact

Apple: heavily scripted content.

Disney: heavily scripted content, except for National Geographic channels, which are totally unscripted.

Fox: more unscripted content than scripted, but “will still feel the immediate swipe of a strike”, and will likely lead to Fox having even less scripted content.

Paramount: CBS will be impacted, with Showtime and Paramount+ lacking new content to license.