As companies mapped out new strategies at Licensing Expo in Las Vegas, a key component remained very much in flux amid a writers’ strike that has brought film, television, and streaming production to a halt.

The stakes of the strike came into focus when Disney revealed during its summit at Expo that release dates for multiple properties within the Avatar, Avengers, and Star Wars franchises were being delayed. And while Disney didn’t comment on the reasons for the delays, licensees who attended the summit confirmed they were tied to the strike.

Studios often adjust their release schedules for a variety of reasons. But the strike, which began in May, has caused production shutdowns in both the film and television industries. Many prominent films and shows completed production early or stopped production altogether since the start of the strike, including Netflix’s Stranger Things, Severance from Apple TV+, and Paramount’s Evil. The last writers’ strike, which started in fall 2007, lasted 100 days.

For the time being, the strike hasn’t affected licensing programs and consumer product plans. But should the labor action continue into early fall, the production of TV and streaming series will be affected, which will likely hamper licensing programs and leave teams with few means for offsetting the delays.

“We had two tentpole movies [in the Avengers and Star Wars franchises] in 2025 delayed, and now we have to find what franchises are available to fill those holes,” said Casey Collins, President of Licensed Consumer Products at Hasbro. “That is real-time impact and I think, as we sit here today, that this strike is going to go on for a while. It is going to have a material impact and at a time when we already have headwinds and need some tailwinds, this is not helping.”

The films, television series, and streaming series that will be most affected if there is an extended strike will be those in pre-production—a period during which much of the writing occurs.

In the case of MGM, that could mean pushing back the launch of new releases in the Pink Panther and Legally Blonde franchises. And that would also mean slowing the licensing programs for those projects, said Robert Marick, EVP Global Consumer Products and Experiences at MGM.

“It is a complicated situation, and I am hopeful that it gets resolved as quickly as possible,” said Josh Silverman, Global Head of Consumer Products at Mattel. “As far as licensing, it hasn’t impacted us yet, but it could if it moves forward to future years. We have a pipeline of content that is in development and proceeding, but there isn’t a particular date by which we might feel any impact.”

In the face of a prolonged writers’ strike, licensors aren’t yet showing an appetite for adjusting royalty rates or minimum guarantees to reflect any delays. Licensors across film, television, and streaming will, however, likely lean more into evergreen content to offset delays in the delivery of new films and series, licensing executives said.

“The question regarding delays that comes to us is royalty rates and minimum guarantees,” Marick said. “We are very sympathetic to that and during the pandemic we adjusted right and left and continue to do so where we can. I think the first thing to go is the guarantee and the royalty remains where it is. If we are asked because of a competitive product, we will absolutely consider reducing it to make it more accessible for consumers.”

To offset any potential loss of business on the consumer products side, many teams will lean even more heavily into location-based entertainment, further expanding a trend already underway.

Hasbro, for example, expects to have 100 LBEs in various forms by year-end and 250 by 2025, Collins said. These include licensee VXT Negocios’ 100,000-square-foot Hasbro City in Mexico City, Mexico that opens this week along with licensee Kilburn Live’s 20,000-square-foot Playskool/Nerf LBE at the Garden State Plaza mall in New Jersey that opens in the fall, Collins said. VXT is investing $60-$75 million in opening a dozen Hasbro LBEs in Latin America. Also on tap is a Nerf AX in Manchester, U.K., along with a second Peppa Pig facility in China.

For its part, Mattel’s Adventure Park in Glendale, AZ will open in 2024 as part of the Crystal Lagoon’s entertainment complex, Silverman said. That’s in addition to Malibu Barbie pop-up restaurants that are opening in New York and Chicago. A second, 20,000-square-foot World of Barbie (the first in Toronto attracted 100,000 people) opened in Santa Monica, CA in April.

“In the broader area, there will be multiple [experiential] formats including theme parks, smaller LBEs, and tours, each of which will have a reason for being and be authentic to the brands and connected to our audiences and fans,” Silverman said.