How the Writers Strike Is Forcing a Rewrite of Emmy FYC Season

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large I’ve been doing this long enough to remember the days when film folks saw doing TV as a bit of a step down, or a one-time novelty — and even TV folks felt like they were in the minors, waiting for that call to join the movie big leagues. That hasn’t been the case for a while, and I like to needle my film colleagues with the now-established fact that TV is where it’s at. The rise of streaming just cemented that. It’s still fun, though, to chat with creatives who have spent most of their career in film, and hear about their experiences in working on TV series. Inevitably, they must admit that working in TV was both gratifying — and perhaps the hardest thing they’ve ever done.

Nick Mohammed still can’t believe how lucky he was to have scored the role of Nate Shelley in Apple’s multi-Emmy Award-winning series Ted Lasso—but it almost didn’t happen. Mohammed had set his sights on a different role which he didn’t land but at the time he didn’t realize it didn’t work out for a reason.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large It’s still unbelievable to think that Riley Keough didn’t have any real singing experience before starring in Amazon Prime Video’s “Daisy Jones & the Six.” Actually, most of the cast didn’t — which makes the tremendous sound of the band all the more impressive. “Daisy Jones & the Six” did what few other shows have done (perhaps “The Monkees” being the other most notable): turned a group of actors playing characters in a band… into an actual band. But back to Keough for a second. Yeah, every story about her and “Daisy Jones” says the same thing: What? She hadn’t sang before? But she’s ROCK ROYALTY. (Granddaughter of Elvis Presley, c’mon, you know the drill by now.) Some might argue it’s in the genes, but that’s just a fraction of it. Don’t sell Keough short. It was hard work and talent. And a lot more hard work. Keough and the “Daisy Jones & the Six” cast also had a bit of weird timing on their side too, as COVID-related production delays forced them to keep practicing. And after all that rehearsal time, they got good. Real good.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Ch-ch-check it out: Hulu’s gotta fight… for the right… to part–ake in some Emmy FYC campaigning. The streamer hopes it has a sure shot at nominations for “Only Murders in the Building,” which is why it has partnered with Yeastie Boys to give out what’cha what’cha want (what’cha want): free food. “Only Murders in the Building”-themed bagel sandwiches will be passed out by Yeastie Boys this weekend and next, prior to the start of Emmy voting on June 15. Of course, it’s only while supplies last, so no sleep till Brooklyn. Here’s why Hulu says it went with bagels for this FYC stunt: “The series takes place in a typical New York apartment building and we wanted to celebrate New Yorkers’ favorite breakfast meal.”

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The official 2022-2023 TV season ended on May 24, according to Nielsen and as you may have seen via my annual TV series rankers (which I posted on Monday), we’ve got the wrap on this year’s winners and losers in the good ol’ fashioned linear TV world. Football, “Yellowstone” and procedurals, oh my! But we’re not living in a good ol’ fashioned linear TV world anymore. Television didn’t grind to a halt on May 24, and the Memorial Day weekend gauntlet of finales and premieres (!) was a fine reminder that TV no longer plays by the rules of a Nielsen calendar. Three of the biggest on-screen events of the year all took place on Sunday night: The series finales of HBO’s “Succession” and “Barry,” as well as the mind-blowing Season 2 ender for “Yellowjackets,” which hit Showtime’s linear channel that same evening.

took its final bow on Wednesday, as the series finale found Jason Sudeikis' titular coach on a plane back home to Kansas, and the rest of its main characters on new journeys of their own.But is this the end of the road for the AFC Richmond Greyhounds? Sudeikis and the show's cast and creators have long insisted that the show was always planned as a three-season run. But that was before they dominated the Emmys' comedy categories two years in a row and became one of the most beloved streaming series.Brett Goldstein, who plays Roy Kent on the Apple TV+ soccer comedy in addition to writing on the show, told the  last summer that, as far as the writers are concerned, the third season would be the show's last.«We are writing it like that.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The simultaneous demise of both Twitter and The CW as we knew it reminds me, however, of one of my favorite industry Tweets of all time. On July 19, 2012, a sharp CW social media staffer posted this: “#Emmy nomination day! Or as we call it, Thursday.”

ended its acclaimed three-season run on Wednesday with Jason Sudeikis' titular coach returning home to Kansas, though it's safe to say that none of the show's beloved characters ended up in the same place they were when the series began.None more so, perhaps, than Jamie Tartt, played by Phil Dunster, whose emotional evolution over the course of the Emmy-winning comedy has made him a fan favorite. The star striker of AFC Richmond, Jamie was a prototypical diva in season 1, though Ted's kind and gentle coaching style began to break him down.

Note: This story contains spoilers from the Season 3 finale of “Ted Lasso.”Yeah, this might be all that we get. This might just well be it.It’s almost like the “Ted Lasso” theme song anticipated that the Season 3 finale would close nearly all major storylines of the Apple TV+ series as the show’s future remains unclear.Season 3, Episode 12, titled “So Long, Farewell,” debuted Wednesday and wrapped up many of the loose ends left behind in previous episodes.

wrapped up its acclaimed three-season run on Wednesday, as the Apple TV+ comedy took its final bow as AFC Richmond came so close to taking home the Premiere League Title, winding up second behind Manchester United in an appropriately humbling and hopeful conclusion to an honest and meaningful series.It was a bittersweet episode, filled with the heartfelt speeches and emotional character development that fans have come to know and love from the two-time Emmy winner for Outstanding Comedy Series.After the final game, it came time for the eponymous Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) to bid farewell to the team and town he's come to love and return home to his son in the US. However, despite his departure, fans quickly got a chance to see the next stage in the lives of all the other beloved characters.Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) becomes the new manager of AFC Richmond, while Coach Beard (‎Brendan Hunt) stays behind to marry his ladylove Jane, and remain a part of the coaching staff.

The writers strike has entered its fifth week and is about to enter its second month and shows no sign of abating.

 series finale!The beloved soccer comedy, led by Jason Sudeikis as the titular coach, takes its final bow on Apple TV+ on Wednesday, as the third and reportedly final -- season concludes with an epic match for the Premier League title.Ted Lasso's third season was a full-circle moment for some of its main character. Ted contemplated moving back home for the sake of his relationship with his son, Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) ended up commiserating with her ex-husband's mistress-turned-wife when it turned out there was a new mistress in the picture.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large During the early days of the 2007-08 writers strike, even after pens went down, many showrunners were still at work. They weren’t writing, but they were handling other aspects of production as cameras continued to roll on preexisting scripts. Eventually, they realized that showrunners might take themselves out of writing, but there’s no way to take writing out of showrunner duties. “It’s obviously part of the storytelling process, because you need a showrunner to keep a sense of the overall story,” says one high-profile writer-producer. “Every decision you’re making, from a craft servicesdecision to a costume decision, is something only you can make because you’re putting it into a whole story. There’s no part of my job that isn’t storytelling.”

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Let’s travel back to the summer of 1989. I’m 15 years old and have just put two large movie posters on my wall: One for Tim Burton’s game-changing take on “Batman,” starring Michael Keaton, and the other for “UHF,” the theatrical comedy debut for the one and only “Weird Al” Yankovic. It’s now 2023. Keaton is back as Batman in next month’s “The Flash.” And Weird Al (always Weird Al, not just Al Yankovic!) is the front-runner for this year’s TV movie Emmy, thanks to the Roku Channel parody biopic “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.” “1989 is back again! It’s all cyclical,” Yankovic says in his signature cheery, upbeat tone. Tell my 15-year-old self that one day he’ll be recording a podcast with Weird Al, and first he’d say, “what’s a podcast?” But after explaining that it’s essentially a radio show, my 15-year-old self would lose his mind. And ask about 2023’s flying cars. Sorry kid.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Last year, Jesse Collins won an Emmy. This year, he’s producing the Emmys. Fox and the Television Academy are set to announce on Thursday that Jesse Collins Entertainment has been tapped to serve as producers of this year’s landmark 75th edition of the Primetime Emmy awards. No host has been named as of yet, and there are still a lot of questions to be answered as to how the writers strike may impact this year’s Emmy Awards, or if the calendar might shift. But for now, the main event is still scheduled to air on Monday, Sept 18 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Fox. Jesse Collins Entertainment takes over from Done+Dusted and Hudlin Entertainment, which had jointly produced the Emmys in 2020, 2021 and 2022, the first two of which were COVID-impacted events. D+D had actually produced the Emmys for five consecutive years, having already been producing the Emmys telecast for two years when it was paired with Hudlin in 2020 to handle the unconventional, no-audience COVID-impacted Emmys. At the time, Hudlin made history as the first Black executive producer of the Primetime Emmys.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large Hasan Minhaj is open to the idea of hosting “The Daily Show” — but it’s not a decision he would make alone. “That’s a family conversation now,” Minhaj tells Variety’s Awards Circuit Podcast. “It’s a very different conversation then when I first got hired at the show, when I was 29. My life is in a very different place. And so that’s a bigger convo.” Minhaj’s recent Netflix stand-up special, “The King’s Jester,” includes a deeply personal look by the comedian at the evolution of his family, from being infertile to eventually raising two children with his life — and how that has changed a lot of things in his life, including his career choices and his on-stage routines.

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large NBC’s coverage of the XXIV Olympic Winter Games and Fox’s FIFA World Cup telecasts were the big winners Monday night at this year’s 44th annual Sports Emmy Awards, winning three Emmys each. ESPN, meanwhile, was the night’s biggest winner among outlets, pulling 13 Emmys. The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awarded this year’s Sports Emmys at a ceremony at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Frederick P. Rose Hall. Bryant Gumbel will receive the lifetime achievement award for his role in sports journalism. The Sports Emmys took place even as the writers strike has led to the postponement of NATAS’ premiere Daytime Emmys telecast next month. “While we gather together, other parts of our television community stand divided tonight,” Adam Sharp, president & CEO of NATAS said during the ceremony. “You’ll note most of the typically scripted elements of our ceremony have been pared back in acknowledgment of, and respect for, the WGA-represented writers out on strike.”

Jason Sudeikis has some killer kicks! The actor owns an impressive sneaker collection. 

Flavor Flav is showing his support for members of the Writers Guild of America!

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large The Daytime Emmys are once again planning to pivot, as next month’s awards show to won’t go forward as previously planned. With the ongoing writers strike, the National Academy of TV Arts & Sciences confirmed on Tuesday that this year’s 50th Daytime Emmys would move from its planned June 16 ceremony to an undetermined later date. “The 50th Annual Daytime Emmy Awards planned for Friday, June 16 on CBS is postponed due to the WGA strike,” NATAS president/CEO Adam Sharp said in a statement obtained by Variety. “In addition, the Creative Arts & Lifestyle ceremony, planned for Saturday, June 17, has been postponed pending a strike resolution. We look forward to our community gathering together as one to celebrate our Golden Anniversary and all of the talented nominees and honorees at a later date.”