As with its parent series, Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice sure doesn’t appear to be exempt from the repercussions and ripple effects of the ongoing strike being staged by the Writers Guild of America (WGA).
If the writers’ walkout endures, Private Practice, like many other series, may be forced to go off the air, or resort to reruns.
Despite such a grim possibility, Shonda Rhimes, its creator and executive producer, has given her complete support to the writers’ cause.
According to the San Jose Mercury News, most new shows like Pushing Daisies and Private Practice, which had been picked up for full seasons a few weeks ago, will be able to churn out no more than 10 to 11 episodes of their debut seasons if current boycott continues.
But Rhimes, the woman behind both Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice, has sent an e-mail message to the members of the WGA stating she would “choose not to render my services as a producer” while they walk out.
“I absolutely believed that I would edit our episodes,” Shonda Rhimes wrote in her e-mail, which was widely circulated earlier this week.
“Until a thought hit me: how can I walk a picket line and then continue to work? How am I supposed to look at myself in the mirror or look at my child years from now and know that I did not have the courage of my convictions to stand up and put myself more at risk than anyone else?”
In a separate statement, Rhimes was quoted as having been of the opinion that the disgruntled writers truly do want to return to their duties.
“I feel like the writers really want to go back to work,” Private Practice creator and executive producer Rhimes said during an event in New York.
