‘Abbott Elementary’ Writer-Producer’s Reaction To Nomination Spotlights Somber Reality Of Emmy Celebration Amid WGA Strike

deadline.com:

Besides TV Academy Chairman and CEO Frank Scherma’s brief reference to “the ongoing guild negotiations” at the top of the nominations announcement, today has been mostly Emmy business as usual, with television industry types and fans celebrating the ones who landed nominations and lamenting those who were snubbed.

But this is not a typical Emmy nominations day. Far from it. The 2023 Emmy nominations were announced two and a half months into a WGA strike, just hours before writers may be joined by actors in the work stoppage as AMPTP and SAG-AFTRA’s negotiations are currently set to conclude tonight.

As writer Brittani Nichols wrote on Twitter this morning shortly after landing her first Emmy nomination as part of the producing team of Outstanding Comedy Series nominee Abbott Elementary, “because of the ongoing writers’ strike, my ability to enjoy this accomplishment has become more complex than usual.” While admitting that winning an Emmy has been a goal of hers since moving to LA 12 years ago, Nichols will not campaign to help make her dream a reality “until a fair deal for the WGA and SAG-AFTRA is reached.” Identifying herself as “an unemployed Emmy nominee”, Nichols noted that “campaigning as if I am — as if everything is hunky-dory and [the studios] are not actively seeking to end the profession of television writing — would feel crappy to me.” After congratulating her Abbott Elementary team on the Emmy nominations, Nichols added, “let’s continue fighting so all entertainment workers are fairly compensated for the value of we bring to the companies.

I hope to see you all on the picket line for a very complicated celebration.” “Send treats to Warner Bros. Gate 4,” Nichols said, referring to the studio producing