Tom Fontana is the new president of the Writers Guild of America East, replacing Lisa Takeuchi Cullen.
The union revealed the results of its 2025 Council elections today. Also voted in were Sasha Stewart as Secretary-Treasurer and Michael Rauch as Vice President of the Film/Television/Streaming sector. All will begin their two-year terms on Friday.
In other news today, the WGA East is planning a rally from noon-1p.m. ET Friday outside ABC’s offices in Manhattan to “demand ABC bring back Jimmy Kimmel Live! and to fight to protect free speech.”
On the election front, Nicole Conlan, Chris Gethard, Liz Hynes, Sarah Montana, Sharyn Rothstein and Erica Saleh were voted in to serve on the Council representing Film/TV/Streaming members. Sie Morley, Nitish Pahwa and Samantha Smylie were elected to serve on the Council representing Online Media members.
They join several WGAE Council members who have a year left in their term including Sara David, Beth Godvik, Monica Lee Bellais, Larry J Cohen, Don P. Hooper, Victoria Pollack, Céline Robinson, Suzanne Weber, members Susan Rinkunas, Jessica Schulberg, Justin DiLauro, Gail Lee and Phil Pilato.
The WGAE Council is made up of 20 Council members — 12 from Film/TV/Streaming, five from Online Media members and three from Broadcast/Cable/Streaming News members — plus five officers: President, Secretary-Treasurer and three VP, one from each work sector.
A veteran of the writers strikes in 2007-08 and 2023, Fontana is a three-time Emmy winner and 20-time nominee who created series including HBO’s Oz and most recently Monsieur Spade and was a writer-producer and showrunner on St. Elsewhere, Homicide: Life on the Street and others. He won two writing Emmys for St. Elsewhere in the mid-1980 and another in 2000 for penning the post-series wrap-up telefilm Homicide: The Movie. His credits also include Borgia, Copper, The Jury and writing the post-9/11 telethon America: A Tribute to Heroes.
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