Aspiring television writer Brian Beneker, whose credits as a script coordinator go back more than 20 years, isn’t the only straight white male to feel that he was being shut out of a writing job because of diversity initiatives. But so far he appears to be the only one willing to seek out Stephen Miller’s America First Legal foundation, associating himself with a Trump world figure who is particularly loathed by progressives.
With his lawsuit against CBS and Paramount alleging that he faced discrimination when he did not get a staff writing job on the CBS military drama Seal Team, Beneker has become a vehicle through which Miller is waging his war on diversity and inclusion efforts in the entertainment industry. In doing so, Beneker has defined himself in a way that is likely to stick. Reached by phone, he declined to comment, as did his attorneys.
A former...
With his lawsuit against CBS and Paramount alleging that he faced discrimination when he did not get a staff writing job on the CBS military drama Seal Team, Beneker has become a vehicle through which Miller is waging his war on diversity and inclusion efforts in the entertainment industry. In doing so, Beneker has defined himself in a way that is likely to stick. Reached by phone, he declined to comment, as did his attorneys.
A former...
- 3/18/2024
- by Kim Masters and Lesley Goldberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A lawsuit filed by a Seal Team script coordinator and freelancer who claims he was denied a writing position because he’s a straight white guy has already struck a chord with fellow scribes.
Many took to X to express their frustration with freelance scribe Brian Beneker, who says in the complaint that he suffered by not being part of “the favored hiring groups; that is, they were nonwhite, LGBTQ, or female.” He also called out the “illegal policy” of diversity, equity and inclusion measures.
Beneker, who has worked on Seal Team since 2017 and before that was a script coordinator on Sons of Anarchy, claims in 2019 that he questioned current showrunner Spencer Hudnut over why previous showrunner John Glenn had hired a new male writer when Glenn claimed at the time that “there were already too many staff writers and there was no room for CBS to hire [Beneker].”
“Hudnut indicated...
Many took to X to express their frustration with freelance scribe Brian Beneker, who says in the complaint that he suffered by not being part of “the favored hiring groups; that is, they were nonwhite, LGBTQ, or female.” He also called out the “illegal policy” of diversity, equity and inclusion measures.
Beneker, who has worked on Seal Team since 2017 and before that was a script coordinator on Sons of Anarchy, claims in 2019 that he questioned current showrunner Spencer Hudnut over why previous showrunner John Glenn had hired a new male writer when Glenn claimed at the time that “there were already too many staff writers and there was no room for CBS to hire [Beneker].”
“Hudnut indicated...
- 3/5/2024
- by Lynette Rice
- Deadline Film + TV
The Hollywood labor community is up in arms again after the Directors Guild of America (DGA) made a number of retroactive additions to its film & TV contract with the studios.
The deal, which was revealed yesterday and gives directors a streaming performance bonus that matches that of the writers, has sown more discontent across town.
Sources tell Deadline that other guild leadership was blindsided by the move, which came more than six months after the DGA struck its original deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
It also would have required both parties to agree to return to the bargaining table, a move that was kept incredibly quiet.
But sources on the studio side indicate this shouldn’t come as a shock to the rest of the labor community.
“I’m surprised anyone is surprised about this,” one studio executive told Deadline of the new provisions.
The deal, which was revealed yesterday and gives directors a streaming performance bonus that matches that of the writers, has sown more discontent across town.
Sources tell Deadline that other guild leadership was blindsided by the move, which came more than six months after the DGA struck its original deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
It also would have required both parties to agree to return to the bargaining table, a move that was kept incredibly quiet.
But sources on the studio side indicate this shouldn’t come as a shock to the rest of the labor community.
“I’m surprised anyone is surprised about this,” one studio executive told Deadline of the new provisions.
- 1/27/2024
- by Katie Campione and Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Studios are seemingly investing a lot of money in AI and a job post at Netflix shows the streamer is looking to fill an AI Producer Manager role that could pay up to $900K a year.
One of the biggest issues that the striking guilds, WGA and SAG-AFTRA, have with AMPTP is the lack of protections against AI.
“Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence is powering innovation in all areas of the business. From helping us buy and create great content, helping members choose the right title for them through personalization, to optimizing our payment processing and other revenue-focused initiatives,” reads the job description.
It brings to mind an episode of Black Mirror’s most current season titled “Joan Is Awful,” which depicts an actress struggling with the studio after signing a contract that gave her digital likeness away.
Rob Delaney, who starred in the episode, gave his thoughts to The Intercept...
One of the biggest issues that the striking guilds, WGA and SAG-AFTRA, have with AMPTP is the lack of protections against AI.
“Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence is powering innovation in all areas of the business. From helping us buy and create great content, helping members choose the right title for them through personalization, to optimizing our payment processing and other revenue-focused initiatives,” reads the job description.
It brings to mind an episode of Black Mirror’s most current season titled “Joan Is Awful,” which depicts an actress struggling with the studio after signing a contract that gave her digital likeness away.
Rob Delaney, who starred in the episode, gave his thoughts to The Intercept...
- 7/26/2023
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Maybe refrain from tweeting on set while a strike is happening, Kim Kardashian.
On Friday, the reality show superstar decided to check in with her 74.9 million followers by writing “I’m on the set of AHS and we have some time between shows. What are you all up to????” Kardashian is starring in the 12th season of American Horror Story — one of several Ryan Murphy productions that have remained in production during the WGA strike.
Instead of getting the usual inquiries about her Skims, her fam and her dating status, she was immediately answered by striking writers — lots of them.
“Picketing, thanks for asking,” wrote one writer.
“Not being a scab,” said another.
“Can you post a cute selfie with the call sheet (advance schedule facing the camera)?” added a strike captain.
“Kim, this is a beautiful opportunity to show some solidarity and tell us if anyone is making script mods on site,...
On Friday, the reality show superstar decided to check in with her 74.9 million followers by writing “I’m on the set of AHS and we have some time between shows. What are you all up to????” Kardashian is starring in the 12th season of American Horror Story — one of several Ryan Murphy productions that have remained in production during the WGA strike.
Instead of getting the usual inquiries about her Skims, her fam and her dating status, she was immediately answered by striking writers — lots of them.
“Picketing, thanks for asking,” wrote one writer.
“Not being a scab,” said another.
“Can you post a cute selfie with the call sheet (advance schedule facing the camera)?” added a strike captain.
“Kim, this is a beautiful opportunity to show some solidarity and tell us if anyone is making script mods on site,...
- 6/24/2023
- by Lynette Rice
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Warner Bros Discovery promised to give writers and directors proper credit on its Max streaming service, but don’t expect the fix to happen anytime soon.
“This could take weeks with all the data that needs to be transferred, checked, finalized,” said one studio insider of the May 23 streamer launch Snafu that attracted outrage and ire from striking scribes and negotiating filmmakers this week. “It is not a simple as pressing a button.”
Still, creatives are unlikely to be placated by Wbd delays after the very raw nerve the errors hit.
“Warner Bros has lumped writers, directors and producers into an invented, diminishing category they call Creators,” WGA West chief Meredith Stiehm said on Wednesday in a joint release with DGA boss Lesli Linka Glatter on the Max rollout. “This is a credits violation for starters. But worse, it is disrespectful and insulting to the artists that make the...
“This could take weeks with all the data that needs to be transferred, checked, finalized,” said one studio insider of the May 23 streamer launch Snafu that attracted outrage and ire from striking scribes and negotiating filmmakers this week. “It is not a simple as pressing a button.”
Still, creatives are unlikely to be placated by Wbd delays after the very raw nerve the errors hit.
“Warner Bros has lumped writers, directors and producers into an invented, diminishing category they call Creators,” WGA West chief Meredith Stiehm said on Wednesday in a joint release with DGA boss Lesli Linka Glatter on the Max rollout. “This is a credits violation for starters. But worse, it is disrespectful and insulting to the artists that make the...
- 5/27/2023
- by Dominic Patten
- Deadline Film + TV
Veteran director Leon Ichaso, who directed TV episodes from “Miami Vice” to “Queen of the South,” and numerous features, died suddenly of a “massive heart attack,” his sister said Monday.
“My beloved brother Leon Ichaso died today of an unexpected massive heart attack in Los Angeles,” his sister Mari Rodríguez Ichaso tweeted in Spanish on Monday. “Brilliant, full of life, youth of spirit and illusions. A wonderful filmmaker and a unique being – and everyone who has met him knows it. I am destroyed. God help us!”
Mari, who is a contributor to the Spanish-language Vanidades magazine and a style columnist for CNN en Español, shared another tweet in English, in which she wrote, “Leon Ichaso- Rip- Pioneer of telling the history of immigrants in his movies! A brilliant director & writer. Loved Life. My beloved brother!… Damn sudden heart attack!”
Leon Ichaso- Rip- Pioneer of telling the history of immigrants in his movies!
“My beloved brother Leon Ichaso died today of an unexpected massive heart attack in Los Angeles,” his sister Mari Rodríguez Ichaso tweeted in Spanish on Monday. “Brilliant, full of life, youth of spirit and illusions. A wonderful filmmaker and a unique being – and everyone who has met him knows it. I am destroyed. God help us!”
Mari, who is a contributor to the Spanish-language Vanidades magazine and a style columnist for CNN en Español, shared another tweet in English, in which she wrote, “Leon Ichaso- Rip- Pioneer of telling the history of immigrants in his movies! A brilliant director & writer. Loved Life. My beloved brother!… Damn sudden heart attack!”
Leon Ichaso- Rip- Pioneer of telling the history of immigrants in his movies!
- 5/22/2023
- by Sharon Knolle
- The Wrap
Exclusive: Showtime and BET Studios announce the development of The Book of Jose, a pilot about hip hop star Joseph “Fat Joe” Cartagena. Cartagena will executive produce alongside pilot script writer Jorge A. Reyes, and Kenya Barris.
The Book of Jose is a rags-to-riches story following Fat Joe’s evolution from growing up in the drug and violence-scarred streets of the Bronx to becoming a Grammy-nominee, producer, and actor with a career spanning nearly three decades. The project will follow every phase of Joe’s life and the threats that have come in the form of rivals, addiction, incarceration, and death. All of which showed the artist that resilience and the love of his family are the only paths to success.
The Book of Jose comes from Barris’ Khalabo Ink Society in collaboration with Cinema Giants, Buffalo Kid Films,...
The Book of Jose is a rags-to-riches story following Fat Joe’s evolution from growing up in the drug and violence-scarred streets of the Bronx to becoming a Grammy-nominee, producer, and actor with a career spanning nearly three decades. The project will follow every phase of Joe’s life and the threats that have come in the form of rivals, addiction, incarceration, and death. All of which showed the artist that resilience and the love of his family are the only paths to success.
The Book of Jose comes from Barris’ Khalabo Ink Society in collaboration with Cinema Giants, Buffalo Kid Films,...
- 6/24/2022
- by Rosy Cordero
- Deadline Film + TV
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