In The Trades: Writers, Talkers, Cross Words

The Writers Co-Op, a sort of joint venture for screenwriters, has gotten 19 top scripters to sign up. John Wells has offered office space and staff support for the production entity, and Warners has offered a first look deal to the Co-Op. Writers will take cuts in their high upfront salaries for the reward of receiving first-dollar gross, the right to participate as producers and a guarantee they will not be rewritten without their consultation and approval, and will get imput all the way from development to post-production.