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With only a couple of days left before the Christmas break to try and induce another wave of premature panic over the theoretical labor Armageddon looming next November when the Writers Guild's contract with the studios expires, executives within the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers are again whispering anonymous warnings about the de facto work stoppage the WGA will force them to inflict on the industry if they don't come to their senses and start negotiating right now. The sabers rattle anew in today's Var story on the "fresh, infectious case of strike-itus" supposedly gripping the town:

"You're seeing the development process speeding up," one exec said. "Dates for delivery of scripts are going to get moved up, if they aren't already."

Studios are taking a long look at accelerating production schedules, much as they did in 2000 and 2001 in advance of widely anticipated writers and actors strikes that never materialized.

"No studio's going to get caught short," one exec asserted. "We are starting to book space in advance and analyzing the pipeline and schedule. The uncertainty adds in layers of complexity to what's already a tough decision." [...]

"You don't have any alternative but to start planning around a strike taking place," one exec said. "It would be irresponsible to not be prepared."

Scripts will be stockpiled! Projects will be rushed into production! The skies will darken (with optional, intermittent streaks of evil lightning) as non-unionized reality shows dominate TV schedules! And while no executive was brave enough to raise the possibility, even under the cloak of anonymity, we think there's a pretty good chance that the WGA's refusal to talk before next September will force the cancellation of Christmas, as Santa Claus and the Baby Jesus will be too worried about the industry's labor strife to bother going through the motions of the holiday season under such tense circumstances.