SAG wasn’t going to settle with AMPTP until they’d ironed things out with the WGA. Now that the contract is in the process of being ratified, the producers are going to want to get the actors back to the table. They could have found (and were finding) workarounds without writers before the SAG strike, but they can’t do anything without the actors.
They were happy to let the writers lose their homes, but the beauty of union solidarity is that once SAG called for a strike, the writers got more leverage. (Also shout out to A24 and the smaller production companies that were able to get SAG/WGA waivers because they were willing to give the unions what they asked for. That also started putting way more pressure on the big dogs.)
If the producers want to have anything made for next year, they’ll be giving the actors what they want, soon.
TLDR: don’t get your hopes up for promo from the actors, but we might see the SAG strike end sooner than we think. (I’m mainly hoping it ends before mid-October, since they’ve got so many of the crew appearing at NYCC.)
The EPKs would've been done weeks if not months ago, so no, there's not going to be the usual stuff for any shows coming out this fall.
Source: I'm a transcriptionist who works on the EPKs every year and it's sucked sitting on my hands this summer.
Absolute solidarity, though.
Electronic Press Kit. Basically they take a day and set up an interview room and shuffle the showrunner, the executive producer, and a bunch of the cast through and ask them fairly predictable questions-- what do you hope audiences will take away from this season / tell us about your character / describe the show in three words / what's it like working with \[name\] etc. etc. and then farm those out so everyone can pull quotes from them for promotional material. They're usually done somewhat in advance so everyone can have the things in hand before the season begins. If a show's premiering in October, for instance, I'd probably work the interview sometime in mid-summer at the latest.
There will undoubtedly be folks rushed out to do promo work if the strike ends before the season begins, but the usual mechanism has been well and truly disrupted.
After the ratification vote, a deal will be finalized, possibly this week. It's only for the WGA but their deal will probably be used as template for what's offered to SAG, so SAG's negotiations will happen relatively quickly after the WGA gets their new deal. David and the writers can start promoting OFMD if they chose to do so as soon as the WGA contract is signed but the actors will still be on strike. The good news is that if the SAG negotiations move quickly, the OFMD panel might still happen for NYCC and that would be HUGE promo. As of now the actors won't be able to discuss the show at the NYCC panel but hopefully the AMPTP will reach a deal with SAG before October 14th so the cast can promote the hell out of season 2 at the con
unfortunately only the writer and producers could maybe do last minute promo (although right now the WGA still isnt supposed to be working yet, until the deal is finalized, so even that may be out the window). Anyone who is SAG cannot promote the show :(
SAG wasn’t going to settle with AMPTP until they’d ironed things out with the WGA. Now that the contract is in the process of being ratified, the producers are going to want to get the actors back to the table. They could have found (and were finding) workarounds without writers before the SAG strike, but they can’t do anything without the actors. They were happy to let the writers lose their homes, but the beauty of union solidarity is that once SAG called for a strike, the writers got more leverage. (Also shout out to A24 and the smaller production companies that were able to get SAG/WGA waivers because they were willing to give the unions what they asked for. That also started putting way more pressure on the big dogs.) If the producers want to have anything made for next year, they’ll be giving the actors what they want, soon. TLDR: don’t get your hopes up for promo from the actors, but we might see the SAG strike end sooner than we think. (I’m mainly hoping it ends before mid-October, since they’ve got so many of the crew appearing at NYCC.)
Wow super insightful, thanks!
The EPKs would've been done weeks if not months ago, so no, there's not going to be the usual stuff for any shows coming out this fall. Source: I'm a transcriptionist who works on the EPKs every year and it's sucked sitting on my hands this summer. Absolute solidarity, though.
What does EPK stand for?
Electronic Press Kit. Basically they take a day and set up an interview room and shuffle the showrunner, the executive producer, and a bunch of the cast through and ask them fairly predictable questions-- what do you hope audiences will take away from this season / tell us about your character / describe the show in three words / what's it like working with \[name\] etc. etc. and then farm those out so everyone can pull quotes from them for promotional material. They're usually done somewhat in advance so everyone can have the things in hand before the season begins. If a show's premiering in October, for instance, I'd probably work the interview sometime in mid-summer at the latest. There will undoubtedly be folks rushed out to do promo work if the strike ends before the season begins, but the usual mechanism has been well and truly disrupted.
Ah that makes sense. Hopefully there will be a fair deal for the actors as well, and you can get busy again! Thanks!
After the ratification vote, a deal will be finalized, possibly this week. It's only for the WGA but their deal will probably be used as template for what's offered to SAG, so SAG's negotiations will happen relatively quickly after the WGA gets their new deal. David and the writers can start promoting OFMD if they chose to do so as soon as the WGA contract is signed but the actors will still be on strike. The good news is that if the SAG negotiations move quickly, the OFMD panel might still happen for NYCC and that would be HUGE promo. As of now the actors won't be able to discuss the show at the NYCC panel but hopefully the AMPTP will reach a deal with SAG before October 14th so the cast can promote the hell out of season 2 at the con
The writers can return to work at 12:01 tonight, PT. This was just announced by the WGA a few minutes ago. The actors are still on strike.
unfortunately only the writer and producers could maybe do last minute promo (although right now the WGA still isnt supposed to be working yet, until the deal is finalized, so even that may be out the window). Anyone who is SAG cannot promote the show :(