Top Hollywood actors have joined the history-making writers' strike, the first joint strike in more than six decades, and caused production across the entertainment industry to shut down as contract negotiations collapse.
The executive director of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Radio and Television Artists (SAG-AFTRA), Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, said during a news conference that the union leadership voted for the stoppage of work hours after their contract expired and negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers representing employers broke off.
Top Hollywood Actors Join Writers' Strike
Crabtree-Ireland said that a strike is an instrument used only as a last resort, and union leaders added that they voted unanimously for a strike to start at midnight. Picketing screenwriters stood outside of Netflix's Hollywood offices chanting "Pay Your Actors!" moments after the strike's announcement.
The recent development marks the first strike for actors from film and television shows since the 1980s, and it is also the first time that two major Hollywood unions have had a strike at the same time in the last six decades. At the time, Ronald Reagan was acting as the actors' guild president, as per Now This News.
In a statement, Fran Drescher, the SAG-AFTRA president, said that employers make Wall Street and greed their priority, claiming that they have forgotten about the essential contributors that make the machine work. He said that they were now on the wrong side of history.
The situation comes as the premier of Christopher Nolan's film "Oppenheimer" in London was moved earlier by an hour so that the cast would be given a chance to walk the red carpet before the SAG board's announcement.
Additionally, the situation has brought questions about the upcoming 75th Emmy Awards if nominations were only announced a day prior. On Thursday, Disney chief Bob Iger also warned that an actors' strike now would have a damaging and lasting effect on the entire industry.
Drescher added that they are the victims in this situation, saying that a greedy entity is victimizing them. According to CNBC, he said that he is shocked by how people in the business have been treating them.
Demanding Better Working Conditions
Members of SAG-AFTRA are already taking the matter seriously, and actors are not allowed to promote past projects through conventions, interviews, or panels as the strike is ongoing. Hollywood performers have been seeking improved wages, working conditions, and health and pension benefits last month before negotiations.
They also sought guardrails for artificial intelligence in future television and film productions. Furthermore, the union wants more transparency from streaming services regarding viewership so that residual payments can be made equitably to that seen on linear TV.
Drescher argued that the industry's entire business model has been shaken and turned upside down due to streaming and artificial intelligence. She said that this moment in history is a moment of truth.
Screenwriters have expressed concern that studios could use artificial intelligence to generate scripts, kicking them out of their jobs. Actors have argued that such technology could be used to create digital replicas of their likenesses without payment or approval, said the New York Times.
