The shutdown is poised to have a ripple effect across the entertainment industry.
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CableTV.com consumer trends reporter Alex Kerai said networks have already revised their fall television lineups. Kerai predicts streaming companies will start to run low on content by the end of year.
But the impact is much larger. Halting production means everyone who relies on it will lose work, such as hair stylists and makeup artists.
"It's going to impact the entire economy in Los Angeles, but also globally," Kerai said.
Kerai said there's hope having actors and writers on the picket lines at the same time will lead to a quicker resolution.
"You have so many more people on strike, so many more productions are going to be shut down, so many more livelihoods are going to be impacted," Kerai said.
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It's the first time two major Hollywood unions have been on strike at the same time since 1960, when Ronald Reagan was the actors' guild president.
Leaders of Hollywood's actors' union, SAG-AFTRA, voted Thursday to join screenwriters in striking.
Members of the Writers Guild of America have been on strike since their own talks collapsed and their contract expired on May 2. The stoppage has showed no signs of a solution, with no negotiations even planned.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.