Dancing With the Stars contestant Matt Walsh is back in the show after previously dropping out. Last week, ahead of the DWTS Season 33 premiere, Walsh announced that he was taking a “pause” on his involvement with the show. His decision was due to his support of the Writers Guild of America strike, as he is a member of the organization.
Now, PEOPLE reports that a rep for Walsh has said that the actor plans to continue on as a contestant, following the news that a deal is being worked out between the writers union and the production studios. “With the hopeful resolution and vote with the WGA, Dancing with the Stars would no longer be a struck show therefore all cast would be able to return,” Walsh’s rep told the outlet. “This includes WGA member Matt Walsh.”
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Following Walsh’s initial announcement, a separate report indicated that DWTS could be postponed. Deadline reported that ABC was considering holding off on the show amid the ongoing WGA/SAG-AFTRA strikes. The consideration was reportedly due in part to actresses Alyson Hannigan and Mira Sorvino considering pausing their involvement with the show as well, amid pressure from their striking peers.
The current Hollywood strikes began with the Writers Guild of America strike on May 2. The organization represents more than 11,000 Hollywood TV and movie writers. The strike was the result of the WGA not reaching an acceptable agreement after six weeks of wage negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
“Though we negotiated intent on making a fair deal – and though your strike vote gave us the leverage to make some gains – the studios’ responses to our proposals have been wholly insufficient, given the existential crisis writers are facing,” the negotiating committee wrote in a letter to members, per VOX. “The companies’ behavior has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing.”
The Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) also began a strike on July 4. Among their list of demands, SAG-AFTRA is asking for “minimum earnings to simply keep up with inflation,” protection of performers’ “images and performances to prevent replacement of human performances by artificial intelligence technology,” “compensation to reflect the value we bring to the streamers who profit from our labor,” and “support from our employers to keep our health and retirement funds sustainable.”
