First of all, Happy Mother’s Day. And, a note of thanks to all of you. The Ankler surpassed 50,000 subscribers this week, growing more than four times in size since the two of us joined forces last year. We are grateful for your support; please don’t hesitate to tell us how we can serve you better. And please say hello to Elaine Low (check out her new FREE Strikegeist Daily Digest) and Sean McNulty at the upfronts this week in New York!
Meanwhile, our most-read story of the week was about showrunners, the human engine that has kept Peak TV afloat — and the people now betwixt and between during the strike, as studios begin ordering them back to work (without much success). Nicole LaPorte interviewed Marc Guggenheim (Arrow, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow), Yahlin Chang (Handmaid’s Tale) and other hit showrunners about the mini rooms, budget cuts and HR nightmares that radically changed the nature of what they do. Says one: “Why would anyone want to be a showrunner? It’s the worst job in the world.” Ouch.
Give it a read if you haven’t (for paid subscribers):
Also from The Ankler
Rushfield: The Very Bad Choices That Led Us Here Inflicting pain on the other side is not enough to fix an industry fundamentally broken
🎧 How Writers are Winning the Strike Narrative Sean, Elaine and Peter Kiefer discuss how, unlike what happened in 2007-08, a larger focus on the gig economy, Silicon Valley and CEOs have made this go-around bigger than Hollywood
🎧 An Email from ‘Assistant 3‘ Rob Long on pecking orders, the strike, two-handers and top billing (transcript here)
Remember to subscribe to our podcasts through the podcast app of your choice.
☀️The Wakeup: End of the Streaming Wars
That was the theme of Sean’s columns as he broke down an eventful week of earnings calls, punctuated by the news out of Disney, where Bob Iger reported that Disney+ lost subscribers. Here’s Sean’s take on CNBC:
Meanwhile, the overall tough week:
NBCU Ad chief out 3 days before Upfronts; Q1 Cable TV bundle melt rate pops +50%
Iger increasing Chapek’s DIS+ price hike, adds $1.5 Bil+ to The Great Studio Content Write-off
PARAMOUNT swings hatchet at Cable Networks, as 9 teams become… 1 group
Ad Biz losses & DOMINION hit FOX, as SUPER BOWL can’t save Q1 profitability
GUARDIANS hits tracking(ish) as SONY is KO’d for 2nd time in 2 weeks
Strikegeist
Please remember to subscribe to our separate and ongoing daily coverage of the strike.
Upfront Havoc is Coming Netflix’s presentation is now virtual, and NBCU’s Linda Yaccarino is off to Twitter. And the protests haven’t even begun
Love on the Picket Lines Writers are aiming for real-life rom-coms as mixers and matchmakers join the fray
Plight of the Modern Showrunner Plus: Hollywood’s support staffers are feeling the burn of suddenly being out of a job
Violence at the Gates A car hit two writers last week at Universal; tensions between a driver and writers on Monday
Spectators Start to Take Sides Sending an ice cream truck is one way to help writers; shutting down production is another
🔎 The Optionist
Andy Lewis delivered his latest curated picks from the world of available intellectual property. Check out the real story of the mobster who survived three shots to the head — and then turned state’s witness:
