The Writer's Guild Association went on strike on May 2, 2023. After weeks of negotiations between the guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, an agreement couldn’t be reached to improve writers’ working conditions. As a result of this, many productions will be halted. This event isn’t unprecedented; the last nationwide strike took place in November 2007, lasting three months and deeply impacting the American television industry.

It's important to understand that television was not the same in 2007 as it is today. Instead of having short seasons that are released as a whole on the same day, shows usually had standard 22-episode seasons that ran from September until May of the following year. So even if the strike lasted three months, the effect could be seen and felt for a whole year of production.

RELATED: Elizabeth Olsen, Brett Goldstein and More Hollywood Stars Offer Support to Striking Writers

Debut Seasons

PUSHING DAISIES main cast sit inside bakery for a promo photo
Image via ABC

After letting the world know that Serena Van Der Woodsen (Blake Lively) and Blair Waldorf (Leighton Meester) were not only frenemies, but a force to be reckoned with by the Upper East Side, Gossip Girl’s first season was paused after Episode 13. When work was resumed, only five of the nine remaining episodes were produced, with a four-month hiatus between airings. It’s safe to say this move didn’t affect the series as a whole, as it lasted a total of six seasons.

Private Practice, a Grey’s Anatomy spin-off focusing on Dr. Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) as she moved to Los Angeles seeking a new life, debuted in September 2007. Its first season was cut short by having only nine episodes. Fortunately, a full second season was ordered. The show’s link with Grey’s Anatomy could have helped with it having strong ratings, but the crossovers were minimal, and it still held up enough to warrant it six seasons. 10 years after its series finale, Addison still appears in Grey’s Anatomy and is arguably one of the best characters in the series.

Conceived as a mid-season show, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles premiered in January 2008. This series lived up to expectations since the start, with the exploration of titular Sarah Connor’s (Lena Headey) life post-Terminator 2:Judgment Day with her son John Connor (Thomas Dekker) and a Terminator (Summer Glau) sent to protect them by future John Connor. Only nine of the 13 originally planned episodes were produced, but the lack of new episodes of other shows helped them average 10 million viewers. Thus, a second season with a full 22-episode count was greenlighted, only to be canceled with a cliffhanger ending that revolutionized the show completely.

But at least T:TSCC got the full second season. Pushing Daisies, a quirky little show about Ned (Lee Pace), a pie maker who reanimated dead people to solve their murder mysteries, got cut once and then twice. Its first season was greenlighted with a full 22-episode count. When the strike took place, only nine of them could be produced and none were done after it ended. A 13-episode second season was ordered instead. Declining ratings didn’t help and thus, Pushing Daisies was cancelled. To this day, fans still yearn for a revival that can bring closure to the pie maker crew’s storylines.

Sophomore Seasons

The cast of Ugly Betty in Season 2 photoshoot
Image via ABC Studios

Following a stellar Season 1, the effect the strike had on Heroes Season 2 could be considered the most severe. Heroes’s sophomore season was intended to be divided in three volumes (Generations, Exodus, and Villains) with a total of 24 episodes. Negative reception of the first episodes of the season forced a retooling of the narrative, eliminating the Exodus volume. After the resolution of the strike, no new episodes were produced, leaving Season 2 with only 11 episodes and a nine-month gap between seasons. The Villains volume was moved to Season 3. Additionally, a spin-off titled Heroes: Origins --intended to be aired during the mid-season break-- was completely scrapped.

On the flip side, Ugly Betty’s Season 2 managed to bounce back. 13 episodes made it to production and were aired until January 2008. A four-month hiatus followed, but when the show returned, its ratings were consistent. It came back strong with Betty (America Ferrera) turning 24, Claire (Judith Light) starting her magazine, and Amanda (Becki Newton) continuing the pursuit of her father, now believed to be Gene Simmons. The total episode count was cut from 20 to 18, and some storylines had to be carried into Season 3, like Lindsay Lohan’s guest role as Betty’s childhood nemesis Kimmie Keegan.

Later Seasons

Cast of Grey's Anatomy in Season 4 photoshoot
Image via ABC

Established shows among the audience, like Grey’s Anatomy and Lost were also hit by the strike. With 17 episodes, Season 4 of Grey’s Anatomy stands as one of the three shortest --the other two being Season 1 with nine episodes and Season 17, filmed and set during the COVID-19 pandemic, with 17 episodes as well. Fortunately, the shorter episode count didn’t take away from the story, as the audience got to see the return of Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh, again) and Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) finally getting back together with Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) through the famed house of candles.

With Season 4, Lost had a rebirth of sorts by incorporating the flash-forwards into its narrative. The strike’s impact on the season was lessened since its premiere was set for January 2008. This caused a shortened 14-episode season and a one-month hiatus between Episodes 8 and 9. Still, the narrative arc was told in full since the two cut episodes from Season 4 were replaced in Seasons 5 and 6 (the final season).

Canceled During The Strike

Cast of The 4400 in Season 4 photoshoot
Image via USA Network

Veteran show The 4400 used to air in the summer. In September 2007 the show aired the final episode of its fourth season, which would later be known as its series finale. The production delays because of the strike, dwindling ratings, and budgetary problems eventually caused its cancellation. Two books (Welcome to Promise City and Promises Broken) were released afterward continuing unfinished storylines — it would have been great to see those stories on the screen.

The 2007-2008 WGA strike left a mark in late 2000s entertainment. After that and the production halt because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s baffling the studios are letting this happen again. The strike is not to blame for the negative effects it has on current TV shows, the working conditions that led up to this moment are. As of now, it is unclear what long-term repercussions this will have in the entertainment industry. What’s clear is that the strike is necessary. Writers need to be recognized and compensated for their work. Writing is the base of the entertainment that the audience consumes and loves. It's only a matter of fairness.