Netflix shows affected by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike

Hollywood was effectively shut down in 2023, beginning with the WGA strike that began in May 2023 and has now joined the SAG-AFTRA union as of July 2023. Netflix is ​​among the companies that have failed to reach new agreements and, as a result, his upcoming title slate is hit hard.

Please note that this is not an exhaustive list, but all titles that are publicly known to us have been affected by the strike. In reality, any title that was in the early stages of development, pre-production, or production is now on hiatus for the foreseeable future.

Big Mouth (Final season)

Variety reported that the writers for the eighth and final season of Big Mouth had been writing for six weeks before the strike brought everything to a halt. Without the delay, the writing would have been finished in August 2023.

If the strike lasts until August, then the writing will be delayed by at least three months, which means that the writing will pick up where it left off in early September, then the writing may not finish until November/December 2023.

This will push the season eight release date back significantly and potentially into early 2025.

«Shit, David Zaslav, you made $250 million last year, be realistic, give us a normal amount of money,» said «Mouth-mouth» writer LE Correia.

Hell Gate spoke to television writers picketing outside Disney’s direct pitch to advertisers:

— Hell Gate *subscribe today!* (@HellGateNY) May 18, 2023

cobra kai (Season 6)

Production had begun on the sixth season of cobra kaiHowever, everything came to a complete halt once it was confirmed that he was «pencils down» in the newsroom.

Jon Hurwitz, one of the series’ co-creators, executive producers and writers, tweeted his and the team’s support of WGA Strike. Once an agreement is reached, production on the series will resume.

We hate to strike, but if we must strike, we strike forcefully. Pencils in the Cobra Kai writers room. There are no writers on set. These are not fun times, but sadly it is necessary. The moment a fair deal is settled, we’ll be back to kicking ass. Meanwhile, sending strength and…

— Jon Hurwitz (@jonhurwitz) May 2, 2023

Emily in Paris (Season 4)

Image: Marie Etchegoyen/Netflix

Despite Variety reporting in 2022 that seasons 3 and 4 would be filming back-to-back, that has not been the case and instead it was clarified that filming was meant to start in late summer/early fall 2023, but has now been pushed back.

the agent of the night (Season 2)

One of the biggest new show releases of 2023 for Netflix has been the agent of the night, which was quickly picked up by Netflix for a second season. The original plan, before the WGA strike began, was to start filming in August 2023. That has now been pushed back significantly given that no scripts have been delivered and even if they were, filming couldn’t start now without talent.

Picket Line Roulette takes me back to Netflix. If the studios had made a fair offer on May 1, we’d be filming The Night Agent season 2 next month. The AMPTP has refused to negotiate with us for over ten weeks and each day that passes further delays your favorite shows. pic.twitter.com/lqNdS5ruHE

— Shawn Ryan (@ShawnRyanTV) July 10, 2023

The Sandman (Season 2)

One of the biggest supporters of the ongoing WGA writers’ strike has been Neil Gaiman, the creator of the Sandman comic and one of the executive producers of the Netflix adaptation.

In April, Gaiman provided an update to fans on what stage production was at for the second season, revealing that the sets had been built and a filming schedule had been set.

When asked if the strike will delay the series, Gaiman gave an open and honest answer.revealing that it depends entirely on the length of the strike, and if script rewrites are required, he won’t authorize Netflix to use non-union writers to step in and take over;

Whether or not Sandman is delayed depends on how long the strike lasts. There will be no scab scripts in Sandman

Truly amazing.

Very proud to provide Neil Gaiman with the first red jersey he has worn since 1987. #wgastrong pic.twitter.com/OFynyO3MsI

– WGA Strike Shirts (@wgastrikeshirts) May 16, 2023

Filming for the series began in June 2023 (ostensibly against Gaiman’s wishes), but was eventually halted in July, the day after a strike was called with SAG-AFTRA.

Strange things (Season 5)

Filming on the fifth and final season of Stranger Things was supposed to begin this summer, but unlike some shows that went on without input from the writers, that wasn’t the case here.

On May 6, the Duffer Brothers tweeted that filming would only start when a resolution was reached with the WGA and now SAG-AFTRA makes any start of filming inconceivable for the foreseeable.

Duffers here. The writing doesn’t stop when shooting begins. While we’re excited to begin production with our incredible cast and crew, it’s not possible during this strike. We hope that a fair deal can be reached soon so we can all get back to work. Until then, over and out. #wgastrong

– strange writers (@strangerwriters) May 6, 2023

Netflix France made a mistake in end of maystating that filming has begun, which the Stranger Things writers quickly corrected them.

that 90s show (Season 2)

Image: Netflix

Season 2 of that 90s show was one of the first titles to cancel filming even though it was due to start at the end of May 2023. Filming would have continued throughout the summer and into September 2023, but due to the WGA strike, all filming dates they were discarded. This is due to the nature of how filming works on a sitcom like this, which is filmed in front of a live audience and requires writers on set.

external banks (Season 4)

Image: Netflix

Renewed ahead of Season 3’s premiere earlier this year, it appears the scripts were put in place before the WGA strike, allowing it to go into production in early summer. However, with the start of the SAG-AFTRA strike, production was immediately halted.

Now, to complete the list, here are all the other programs that have been affected by the ongoing strikes:

• little heaven – A new comedy pilot that was hoping to get a series pitch was secretly filmed in June 2023, but was halted mid-production.
• Shadoww and Bone – The LA Times reported that the ongoing strikes would mean that the decision on the season 3 renewal of the show would be delayed.
• The Upshaws (season 4) – Production was halted early on for the fourth season of The Upshaws. According to Wanda Sykes, 10 of the 12 episodes of the season have been filmed and will premiere in August 2023.
• Unstable – A writers room had been set up for season 2 of this Rob Lowe comedy, but according to Deadline closed.
• Virgin River (Season 6) – It had been suggested that the new season of Virgin River would go into production in the summer of 2023, but this is no longer the case.
• Day zero – Production started on Day zero but it was closed at the beginning of June 2023 and it is not clear when it will be up and running again.

For more movies and series that have been delayed by the two respective strikes, including titles that are not with Netflix, collider and Deadline they’ve done a pretty good job of compiling titles.

Are there any other major Netflix titles that we haven’t listed below? Email me at [email protected] or on Twitter @kasey__moore.

Jacob Robinson contributed to this report.