Film, Television, and Artificial Intelligence: Ensuring the Role of Screenwriters in Anticipation of Generative Artificial Intelligence’s Increasing Capabilities

Authors

• Rachel Johnson

Library of Congress Authority File

http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79122466.html

Document Type

Comment

Abstract

Artificial Intelligence (AI) currently is one of most critical topics discussed across industries. AI technology, such as Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI), looms over people employed in creative fields who view it as a threat to their livelihoods. Legislative and judicial law must grapple with the complex legal issues GAI poses. In the entertainment realm, employees in professions such as Hollywood’s film industry have found ways to secure their present and near future against AI-encroachment.

In 2023, the Writers Guild of America (WGA), a labor union covering the screenwriters of television and film, coordinated the second longest labor strike in Hollywood’s history. As part of the negotiations to end the strike, the WGA successfully addressed GAI. The WGA feared GAI’s growing ability to engage in the creative process and suspected that studios would increasingly rely on GAI as the effectiveness of those systems increased. In response, writers negotiated contract terms that ensured their centrality within the screenwriting process.

The WGA strike exposed major ethical and legal issues that accompany reliance on GAI in creative industries. This Comment examines the different value judgments that societies must make about creativity and storytelling. It then examines current case law in countries, specifically the United States, China, and India, that have addressed AI in copyright law. Finally, this Comment proposes United States legislation on how federal copyright law should guide the use of generative AI in the creative process.

How each country characterizes GAI in its copyright law will impact the vitality of their creative professions. Specifically, the scope of the authorship requirement is likely to impact how powerful actors rely on generated works in the future. As result, the United States must clearly define AI as a tool in creative process, rather than an author, in order to protect the interests of writers and artists.

Recommended Citation

Rachel Johnson, Film, Television, and Artificial Intelligence: Ensuring the Role of Screenwriters in Anticipation of Generative Artificial Intelligence’s Increasing Capabilities, 27 San Diego Int'l L.J. 333 (2026)
Available at: https://digital.sandiego.edu/ilj/vol27/iss2/6