EXCLUSIVE: There was “fire and brimstone” tonight WGA members’ meeting – the last to be held before the start of contract negotiations with the AMPTP Monday. The meeting, held via Zoom, was led by the co-chairs of the guild’s bargaining committee: Past Presidents of WGA West Chris Keyser And David A. Goodman.

A guild member who attended provided Deadline with this written record of the meeting:

“Keyser basically ran the show. About 35 minutes to install. He was passionate, and even though Goodman gave a little speech about we not going to strike unless we had to, Keyser was on fire and brimstone, rallying the troops. Statistics showed that companies were making more money than ever, but we were making less than ever. He talked about the 7,000 responses they got from their polls – picked out a few horror stories.

“The fundamental point is that we must change MBA, not just edit it. And that it’s time – now or never!

“They talked about the features and wanting to get a guaranteed two-step process.

“Most of the talk was about episodes and the need to “get our money and our power back” from these mini-rooms… it was all really about mini-rooms… new weekly minimums for mini-rooms but also rules that all mini-rooms writers involved in a mini room get money upon pickup. A minimum number of writers to hire for mini-rooms. Scope protection to be improved.

“We won’t have a middle class if we don’t deal with it now. We are a union with a “lion’s heart”.