The Option Period Season: 1 Episode: 9 Original Air Date: November 27, 2006 Network: NBC Created by: Aaron Sorkin The "WMA" Context The shorthand reference "WMA" points to William Morris Agency (now part of WME). In the world of Hollywood deal-making, WMA was one of the "Big Four" talent agencies. Episode 9 centers almost entirely on a high-stakes negotiation that takes place at WMA’s offices, making it a unique bottle episode that abandons the usual studio backlot for the corporate corridors of representation. Plot Summary The episode picks up immediately after the fallout of the previous episode. Jack Rudolph (Steven Weber), the network president, is furious. The head writer, Matt Albie (Matthew Perry), has defied him by refusing to cut a politically sensitive sketch about Jesus (from Episode 8, "Nevada Day"). In retaliation, Jack invokes the "option period" of the show's contract—a clause that allows the network to cancel Studio 60 after 13 episodes unless certain financial and creative conditions are met.