New York/Los Angeles - Actors like Robin Williams, David Duchovny, Tim Robbins and Julianne Moore joined picket lines Thursday as the screenwriters strike entered its fourth day, forcing a growing number of prime time shows into cancellation. Among the shows that are now on hold are the hit political thriller 24, the popular comedy drama Desperate Housewives and the cult-status comedy The Office.
The strike started Monday after last-minute talks between Hollywood producers and the Writers' Guild of America broke down. The key sticking point is the writers' demand for residual payment when their work is distributed over the internet, where many TV shows are expected to migrate in the coming years.
Sally Field, who won the best actress Oscar in 1979 for the pro- union film Norma Rae, also backed the writers.
They "are not being allowed to participate in the future of the business," Field said on a picket line outside the Disney studios. "This can be a very lucrative field, but also incredibly insecure for all of the artists, writers, actors and directors."
Talks between the sides have not resumed since and a representative of the WGA on Thursday blasted former movie star and producer Arnold Schwarzenegger for not intervening in the dispute in his current role as California governor.
"The governor is ideally situated because of his position and his background to convince the companies to negotiate seriously," WGA board member Howard Rodman told the Los Angeles Times. "The fact that he is not using his official and unofficial powers to do that is very disappointing."
The last writers' strike in 1988 lasted more than five months and cost an estimated 500 million dollars. Industry analysts have predicted that the strike will last well into 2008 and create havoc with TV schedules as studios and networks run out of prepared scripts and actors and other professionals refuse to cross picket lines.
However Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, which owns the Fox Network, said the strike could benefit his network since it has a larger ratio of reality television shows than its competitors. The Fox network could gain a "significant" ratings share, said Peter Chernin, the president and chief operating officer of News Corp said in releasing the company's quarterly earnings.
