HBO chief and noted internet troll Casey Bloys rolled out the network’s 2024 lineup on Thursday, and there were some conspicuous gaps in the schedule.
The second season of “House of the Dragon” wasn’t delayed by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, but the next season of “The White Lotus” was pushed back to 2025, as was the “It” prequel series “Welcome to Derry.” And season 2 of “The Last of Us” isn’t even expected to start production until next spring.
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Some networks aren’t running into these issues, however – because they already settled things with the actors’ union.
“Networks like AMC were not part of the AMPTP, so they were able to continue production on certain shows,” The Wrap's senior TV reporter Kayla Cobb told KNX News’ Charles Feldman. “So it might be a good moment for them to kind of shine a light on their series.”
AMC’s critically beloved “Interview With the Vampire” and two “Walking Dead” spinoffs are among dozens of series that got to keep shooting under a SAG-AFTRA interim agreement. Cobb says the delays of some tentpole franchises may clear the way for some of these smaller productions to gain a following.
“But yeah, I think the average person is going to start noticing these gaps and delays in the next month or two,” she added.
HBO’s 2024 slate isn’t totally empty – they’ve still got a Park Chan-wook espionage thriller, a buzzy miniseries starring Kate Winslet as a European dictator, and, AMPTP willing, yet another Batman property in the fall.
“This is all dependent on the resolution of the SAG-AFTRA strike here soon, so there is a possibility that these delays can go on even further,” Cobb said.
An unnamed SAG-AFTRA source told Deadline Wednesday night that they were “beyond cautious optimism” for a speedy deal. Apart from ruining the winter TV schedule, the Hollywood strikes are estimated to have cost California $6.5 billion and 45,000 jobs.
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