As more and more creatives take to protesting for better wages, Stranger Things season 5 becomes the latest show to be delayed due to the Writer’s Guild of America strike. The next chapter of the hit Netflix sci-fi horror series is set to be the finale as the people of Hawkins prepare for one more epic battle against Vecna and the forces of the Upside Down. Production of Stranger Things season 5 was expected to begin later this year, though looks to be encountering a hurdle.
Just a few days after it kicked off, the Duffer Brothers took to the official Stranger Writers Twitter account to announce that Stranger Things season 5 is being delayed due to the WGA writer’s strike. The creators expressed their hopes for a deal to be reached so they could resume production, but that that it is “not possible during this strike.” See what the Duffers wrote below:
How The Writer’s Strike Is Affecting Major TV Productions
Stemming from the guild’s concerns about streaming residuals, artifical intelligence being used to replace their jobs and wanting requirements for more specific terms in contracts to prevent being shorted on pay, the WGA officially declared strike on May 2 when they failed to come to an agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Picketing swiftly began outside a number of major studios in Los Angeles and New York City, including MGM, Disney, Paramount, and HBO, among others, with many top creators sharing their support online.
Understandably, a number of shows have found themselves delayed or shut down entirely due to the writer’s strike, some of which include every late night talk show, Abbott Elementary season 3, Evil season 4, and fellow Netflix title Big Mouth season 8. The effects have even been felt on the movie side of the industry, with the long-delayed Blade reboot set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe put on pause just prior to its filming start along with the similarly long-awaited Community: The Movie.
On the other side of things, some studios and productions have been able to forge ahead in spite of the strike, including Prime Video’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2, HBO’s House of the Dragon season 2 and Disney+’s Andor season 2, among others. While Stranger Things season 5 may be the latest to be delayed amid the ongoing strike, one can hope that it resumes sooner than later both thanks to a fair deal for WGA members, and to avoid a similarly long delay as season 4.
Source: Stranger Writers/Twitter
