• Join Puck

    Directly Supporting Authors

    A new economic model in which writers are also partners in the business.

    Personalized Subscriptions

    Customize your settings to receive the newsletters you want from the authors you follow.

    Stay in the Know

    Connect directly with Puck talent through email and exclusive events.

  • What is puck? Newsletters Authors Podcasts Events Gift Puck Careers

Writers Guild vs. Writers

Julie Bush may have never meant to cross the guild, but her aggressive excommunication and public shaming for a strike violation suggests Hollywood’s most militant union is already gearing up for another contentious studio showdown.

Meredith Stiehm
While some in the private Facebook and WhatsApp groups are arguing that the guild is rightfully instilling the fear of god (or WGA president Meredith Stiehm) ahead of studio talks in early 2026, others think the famously militant union has again gone overboard and is ruining reputations as a power move. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images
Matthew Belloni
April 22, 2025

If you’re wondering whether the Writers Guild leadership is fiery enough to greenlight another strike next year, take a look at how the guild is treating some of its own members today. It’s not just that a handful of writers were recently suspended from the guild. Perhaps most damaging, these writers were publicly shamed via emails to members (and, subsequently, the media) after they were found to have violated guild rules during the 2023 shutdown. In a town where even the appearance of union disloyalty can cost someone jobs, it’s a pretty massive hammer to drop.