Credit: Inside the MagicDisney+ is reportedly actively working to cancel the traditional payment structure for the writers who help create its content despite months of strikes against this kind of corporate action.
The Disney+ streaming service was launched in 2019 as direct competition to Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and HBO Max (among others) and initially had a huge advantage. The service was promoted as containing every piece of content that the Walt Disney Company had ever produced (with the notable exception of the controversial 1946 movie Song of the South), giving it a deep catalog of classic animation and live-action movies and television to entice viewers.
It also had the wide-ranging appeal of streaming content from all of the media companies owned by Disney, promising that viewers would be able to access movies and shows from Marvel Studios, Indiana Jones and Star Wars from Lucasfilm, the X-Men and The Simpsons from the former 20th Century Fox, National Geographic, and more.
Related: Disney+ Loses Millions of Subscribers, Streaming Future Uncertain
All of this and Disney+ was launched with a subscription price of $6.99 a month, making it one of the cheapest major streaming services in the world at the time. The cost to view streaming content on Disney+ without ads is currently double that initial price.
Since 2019, things have not been going so great, financially speaking, for the Walt Disney Company. CEO Bob Iger has been doing everything he can to cut costs, trim the fat, and cancel any future payments. Now, it is being reported that part of his promise to get rid of $2 billion in expenses is canceling the long-standing expectation of residual payments for writers on the classic BBC Studios show Doctor Who.
Doctor Who is the longest-running science fiction franchise in the world, having begun broadcasting on BBC in 1963. The series enjoys massive popularity and cultural penetration in the United Kingdom, but it has only developed a cult following in the United States. Recently, however, a deal was struck between the BBC and Disney to begin streaming the series on Disney+, beginning with the upcoming Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials.
This will potentially bring the Doctor Who franchise a huge new audience and add a shiny new jewel to the Disney+ crown. At the same time, it is being reported that writers of Doctor Who episodes are now being paid larger up-front fees and no residuals, meaning no further payments or additional compensation for reruns, syndication, or further use of the material.
According to Deadline, Doctor Who is an incredibly lucrative source of income for writers, given that the show has aired hundreds of episodes and is in regular repeat airing around the world. It seems that contracts for the Disney+ Doctor Who episodes were signed before the recent Writers Guild of America strike began; residual payments were a huge point of contention during the strike, and eventually resulted in higher streaming residual payments and bonuses for writers.
Writers Guild of Great Britain General Secretary Ellie Peers told Deadline, “As a trade union we take our responsibilities in negotiations very seriously and this involves being in full possession of the facts before taking up issues with broadcasters and others, both privately and publicly. The terms outlined to us by Deadline, if true, would represent a serious retrograde step for UK writers working on Doctor Who.”
Related: Disney Parks Rumored To Add Long-Running ‘Doctor Who’ to Parks After Latest Disney+ Reveal
Disney has not commented on the cancelation of the traditional residual payment structure for Doctor Who, while the BBC has said that such deals are “commercially confidential.”
The Doctor Who 60th anniversary specials feature fan-favorite actor David Tennant, who previously played the Tenth Doctor and now portrays the Fourteenth Doctor, as well as Catherine Tate as Donna Noble. When the show begins its new season, the lead role of Fifteenth Doctor will be played by Ncuti Gatwa. Previous showrunner Russell T. Davies has returned to helm the show
We will update you with any comments for further information on Disney+ and the potential cancelation of standard residuals for writers.
Will you watch Doctor Who on Disney+? Do writers deserve residuals for their work, or is a single payment enough? Tell us in the comments below!