Screenwriters have long delivered draft after draft before being paid for the first, and the 2026 deal tries to curb the practice with a reminder to producers

Free Work in Screenwriting: What the WGA Deal Does About Unpaid Drafts

Ask any feature writer about the hardest part of the job and the answer is often not the writing. It is the weeks or months spent revising a script at a producer’s request before the studio has formally received, and paid for, the first draft.

The practice is known in the trade as free work. The 2026 agreement between the Writers Guild and the studios addresses it, modestly.

How It Happens

A typical screenwriting deal pays in steps: so much on commencement, so much on delivery of the first draft, then further sums for a set of revisions and a polish. The writer is paid for a step when it is delivered to the company.

In practice, the writer usually works with a producer who is not the studio. The producer reads the draft before it goes in and has notes. The writer revises. The producer has more notes. This can continue through several versions. Each is, in effect, a rewrite. But because the script has not been officially delivered, the writer has been paid only the commencement money. The delivery payment waits, and so do all subsequent steps.

Writers go along with this because they want the script to succeed, because the producer is the project’s champion and because refusing can cost a relationship.

What the Deal Says

According to Variety’s summary of the agreement, the guild sought to address free work, whereby writers submit multiple drafts before getting paid for their first draft. Under the deal, the studios will tell producers that a request for a rewrite can come only from the company, a step intended to discourage producers from seeking extra passes.

The Hollywood Reporter’s account of the tentative agreement quotes the guild as saying the contract helps address free work challenges.

How Much Will a Reminder Do?

It is fair to ask. A reminder is not a penalty. It does not change the payment structure or create an automatic remedy.

What it does is clarify authority. The contract already provides that a writer is paid for work the company requests. If only the company may request a rewrite, then a producer’s informal request for another pass is either not a request the writer is obliged to fulfil, or, if the company adopts it, a rewrite that should be paid. A writer who is asked for yet another version can point to the rule. That gives representatives something concrete to cite.

Earlier Measures

This builds on the 2023 agreement, which among other things addressed late payment and introduced a guaranteed second step for certain screenwriters hired at lower fee levels, so that a writer is not dismissed after a single draft. The guild has treated screenwriters’ conditions as a continuing project across several contracts.

The Producers’ Perspective

Producers are not simply villains here. Their case is that a script submitted before it is ready may be judged harshly and the project abandoned, which hurts the writer as well. Notes before delivery are, in their view, part of collaboration. Many producers are themselves unpaid during development and are taking a risk on the project.

There is something in that. The difficulty is that the cost of the extra work falls entirely on the writer, while the benefit is shared.

Why It Matters More Now

Free work has become more burdensome as the business has changed. Fewer films are in development. Deals are more often for a single step. Fees for many writers have been flat. When a one-step deal turns into four months of unpaid revisions, the effective rate for the job falls sharply. For writers whose health coverage depends on reaching an earnings threshold, delayed payment can also affect eligibility.

What Writers Can Do

Several practical measures are available.

Set expectations early. At the start, the writer or representative can state that the script will be delivered to the company when the first draft is complete, and that producer notes will be addressed in the paid revision.

Deliver formally. When a draft is finished, send it to the company as well as the producer, with a dated cover note. Delivery triggers payment.

Use representatives. Agents, managers and lawyers can raise the issue so the writer does not have to.

Cite the rule. The new language gives a neutral reason to decline: the contract says rewrites are requested by the company.

Contact the guild. It can intervene, sometimes without identifying the writer as the source of the complaint.

Keep records. Save every draft and every email requesting changes. They establish what was done and when.

For Writers Outside the Guild

Non-union writers have even less protection and are asked for free work more often. The principles are the same. Define in the contract what constitutes delivery, how many revisions are included and what further ones cost. Put a time limit on each stage.

A Cultural Problem

Ultimately free work persists because of custom and unequal power. Contract language helps at the margin. The larger change would be a shared understanding that a writer’s time has a price. The guild’s latest step is a small one in that direction.

And to Finish

The producer’s note is a comic genre in itself. The London Prat contributes to it in its UK satirical news on unpaid work and British satirical news about notes from producers. Bohiney Magazine covers the American development process.

SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/