 During the 2007 – 2008 Writers Guild of America strike , official production of the show halted for most of December 2007 and for various periods afterward . Fox continued producing episodes without MacFarlane 's final approval , which he termed " a colossal dick move " in an interview with Variety . Though MacFarlane refused to work on the show , his contract under Fox required him to contribute to any episodes it would subsequently produce . Production officially resumed after the end of the strike , with regularly airing episodes recommencing on February 17 , 2008 . According to MacFarlane , in 2009 , it costs about $ 2 million to make an episode of Family Guy . 
