COVID-19 is always on our minds these days, dammit. We are, however, happy to see this positive angle from writer-turned-TV-mogul Greg Berlanti.
by Chris Gardner
TV mogul Greg Berlanti has committed $1 million as part of a COVID-19 relief effort that will see funds going directly to staffers-in-need as well as industry organizations that have stepped up to help Hollywood workers during the unprecedented coronavirus pandemic.
Berlanti announced the donation Wednesday in a letter distributed to employees and production teams across 17 shows, representing a massive roster of 5,000 crew and production staffers. Per the letter, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, the first $600,000 will go directly to his team members “most in need,” starting with the series that were shutdown “with production incomplete,” including Batwoman, Doom Patrol, The Flash, Riverdale, The Flight Attendant, Supergirl and Prodigal Son. As more is revealed about the severity and duration the pandemic will have on the industry, the hope, he writes, is to then open the fund to the other Berlanti Prods. shows including All American, Black Lightning, The Girls on the Bus, Katy Keene, Legends of Tomorrow, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Stargirl, Superman & Lois, Titans and You.
An additional $400,000 will be doled out to institutions that offer a range of financial and health care services to crew, actors, unemployed support staff and others in the entertainment industry. Those efforts include the Motion Picture Television Emergency Relief Fund, the SAG-AFTRA COVID-19 Disaster Fund and The Actors Fund….