Nothing's definite yet -- not by a long shot -- but the frosty standoff between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers might be starting to thaw.

Variety reports that the two sides have agreed to resume talks, setting November 26 as the date that new negotiations are set to begin. Though both the WGA and the AMPTP agreed to a news blackout, Variety obtained an e-mail from WGA West president Patric Verrone to the membership, saying in part:

"This announcement is a direct result of your efforts...for 12 days I have repeated that a powerful strike means a short strike...Now it is equally important that we now prove that good news won't slow us down, either. We must remember that returning to the bargaining table is only a start. Our work is not done until we achieve a good contract and that is by no means assured. Accordingly, what we achieve in negotiations will be a direct result of how successfully we can keep up our determination and resolve."

Until recently, the AMPTP had insisted that it wouldn't resume negotiations until the strike ended. The latest developments are encouraging, but don't break out the champagne -- there's still a lot of ground that both sides need to cover before the strike can end, and they haven't stopped slinging arrows just yet. Variety quotes AMPTP president Nick Counter as recently saying:

"For true negotiations to take place, there has to be some expectation that a deal can be made, but by their past actions and their current rhetoric that certainly doesn't appear to be the case."

And just think -- even if this strike is resolved quickly, we've still got the actors' and directors' strikes to look forward to in 2008.

Source: Variety