Late Night With Seth Meyers lays out the impending WGA strike
On Friday, Seth Meyers took a moment on his late-night show to talk through how a Writers Guild of America strike will affect TV and the people who love it
Aux News Late Night with Seth Meyers
Tonight at 11:59 PDT, the clock will officially run out on the current contract between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), at which point the WGA is poised to strike if ongoing negotiations don’t succeed. In recent weeks, countless writers have explained why they voted in favor of a strike, citing financial instability, scant opportunities for upward mobility, and the “abuses” of streaming mini-rooms as some of the industry issues they want to see addressed and alleviated.
Although a WGA strike would mean (temporary) curtains for his own program, comedian Seth Meyers has asserted he’ll rally behind the Guild if they move forward with the action. In the event of a strike, late-night variety shows like Late Night With Seth Meyers, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and Saturday Night Live will see some of the swiftest ramifications given the structure of their writers’ rooms. Like fellow late-night hosts Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, and Jimmy Kimmel, Meyers has agreed to pause production on Late Night With Seth Meyers if an agreement isn’t reached, a decision he discussed recently on the show.
“I’m good at one thing, which is writing, and I love writing so much. I am deeply proud of the fact that I get to be a professional writer,” Meyers shared during Late Night with Seth Meyers’ “Corrections” segment on Friday evening. “I bring this up because, as of Monday at midnight, there might be a writers’ strike. And if a writers’ strike happens, that would shut down production on a great many shows.”
The last time the WGA struck—between 2007-2008—the action lasted 100 days and brought the industry to a screeching halt, shortening countless shows and leaving many others abruptly in the lurch. At that time, Meyers was in the thick of his tenure at Saturday Night Live; in his experience, a strike “doesn’t just affect the writers, it affects all the incredible non-writing staff on these shows,”
“It would really be a miserable thing for people to have to go through, especially considering we’re on the heels of that awful pandemic that affected obviously not just show business, but all of us,” Meyers opined.
Meyers also emphasized to his audience that, if they don’t see him behind the Late Night desk in the next few days, it will be a direct result of the potential strike. Although Meyers says he’s “incredibly hopeful” that the WGA will be able to come to an agreement with the AMPTP, he also asserts that the demands laid out by the Guild—which include reworking writer compensation, overhauling measly streaming residuals, and regulating the use of AI in writers rooms—are far from unfair.
“I also feel very strongly that what the writers are asking for is not unreasonable,” he concluded. “And, as a proud member of the Guild, I’m very grateful that there is an organization that looks out for the best interests of writers.”
16 Comments
“On Friday, Seth Meyers took a moment on his late-night show”1) Late Night doesn’t air on Fridays2) Corrections is a YouTube exclusive video that is uploaded Fridays, it is not a segment of his show.
Just a correction, but Corrections isn’t part of Late Night with Seth Myers, meaning it wasn’t part of his Friday show on NBC. It’s a separate YouTube only feature that he does.
Yeah, I don’t watch the show, but I was confused about what audience the article is referring to, since it sounds like it’s just the camera men laughing like in the early days of lockdown. It’s a good thing it’s online only, since it’s an interminable bit
Also, for anyone who just wants the WGA part, it starts at minute 15 in this 17 minute video.
I’ll have you know, I am a Jackal, sir. And, I love this Youtube-only segment. But, it’s become so self-referential that Seth Meyers has talked about how it’s hard to just jump in. And, yes, it is just people that work on the show standing around and laughing.
In the late 2000s and early 2010s The Onion had fake corrections and letters to the editor that I thought were pretty funny.
I don’t watch much of the main show anymore, because Corrections is just so organic and silly improv with all kinds of very personal vibes with everyone working there feeling like they care about on another – I used to watch closer look but I’ve got John Oliver and Internet Today to cover highlights of the endless dredge that is American politics – I feel like Seth is a much funnier guy just doing things freeform rather than the political late show host comedy
I like a Closer look, but I agree that even within it, the funniest parts usually aren’t the political stuff, it’s usually when Seth goes on weird side tangents like Al Pacino impressions or making fun of Wally or talking to the Sea Captain. Although his Trump impression makes me laugh too.
Well there’s one face I won’t miss in the event of a strike.
Except for the Sea Captain. I may be in the minority here, but I like the Sea Captain.
Best talk show out there.
I remember the garbage that came out of Hollywood during that last writer’s strike. Productions that were already in full swing and too expensive to just pause were being forced to rely on the actors, directors, producers to do on the fly rewrites and they were terrible. Quantum of Solace comes to mind. Daniel Craig was rewriting pages the day of shoots. You’d think the AMPTP would like to avoid that again but I guess they have short memories.
It’s a pity he’s going off the air. It’d be funnier if all the late night show guys just improvised everything on the air so that they’re not technically doing writing for the show.
I don’t think NBC will allow it again after Conan spent so much air time spinning his ring on the desk.
But there’s so much potential!I wonder if Colbert could reach passages from The Silmarillion on the air.
I have vague recollections that Letterman still did an occasional Late Show during the strike 15 years ago?? I do recall him being very much in support of the WGA during the time regardless.
“With all that said, if the strike goes forward, I will be starting an OnlyFans account and yes, I will show everything.”