WGA Asks Nominated Members Not to Attend Tony Awards

The WGA has asked nominated members to refrain from attending the Tony Awards ceremony on Sunday, June 11th.

According to Deadline, "the WGA is asking its members that are also nominated for the Tonys not to attend the award show, it has allowed them to pre-tape an acceptance speech in case they win. Another alternative the WGA is giving members is to ask a non-member to accept the award on their behalf."

BroadwayWorld previously reported that after Tony Awards Management Committee submitted a second petition to the WGA, the WGA agreed to not picket the ceremony, allowing the awards to be televised as scheduled, with non-scripted segments.

A statement from the union reads, "...the WGA will not be picketing the show. Responsibility for having to make changes to the format of the 2023 Tony Awards rests squarely on the shoulders of Paramount/CBS and their allies. They continue to refuse to negotiate a fair contract for the writers represented by the WGA. As they have stood by us, we stand with our fellow workers on Broadway who are impacted by our strike."

The last WGA strike lasted for three months in 2007-08. The 2023 strike officially began on May 2, 2023, with main issues revolving around increased pay, better residuals from streaming media, AI "writing" regulation, and staffing minimum requirements.

At this time, all other awards ceremonies of the 2022/23 theatre season, including the Drama League Awards, Drama Desk Awards, Outer Critics Circle Awards, etc., remain uneffected by the strike.

The 76th Annual Tony Awards nominations were announced on May 2, 2023. Check out the full list of nominees. At this time, the cermony is still set to be hosted by Academy Award winner and Tony Award nominee Ariana DeBose from the historic United Palace in New York City's Washington Heights on Sunday, June 11.