Meet the Negotiating Committee: Hallie Haglund
Bio: Hallie Haglund is an Emmy award-winning comedian and writer. She wrote for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and Trevor Noah for a decade, but has since moved on to write and produce for shows like Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas on HBO and Netflix's The G-Word with Adam Conover. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two semi-feral children.
What prompted you to join the Negotiating Committee?
The WGA asked me, that's pretty much all it took! As lame as it sounds, the chance to represent fellow writers in fighting for improvements in the industry really felt like an honor, so I was happy and excited to do it.
Tell us about a time when you have felt a strong feeling of solidarity with your fellow writers.
I feel strong solidarity with fellow writers right now. It has been incredibly affirming to realize that struggles I've faced in my career haven't been happening in a vacuum. They're struggles my fellow Guild members are facing, usually because of bad practices by the studios, and we actually have some kind of power in the situation. It's easy to feel powerless when you think you're alone. Hearing the stories shared by my fellow Negotiating Committee members and other members of the Guild has made me feel less crazy, and like together maybe we can improve the state of things.
What makes the 2023 contract cycle different from past ones that you have witnessed or in which you have participated?
At a Guild meeting recently, one member who's been around for a lot of these cycles noted, in response to our pattern of demands, "I think all this is necessary, and that scares me." This isn't a single item agenda. We're tackling a lot of problems across the industry this year, and getting the AMPTP to meet us on some of our demands could undo some of the massive damage done to writing and writers over the past decade. Our profession is in existential peril. During my time in the Guild, a cycle has never felt this critical.