Unheard of for 43 years: after four weeks of unsuccessful negotiations with the AMPTP (the body representing the major studios and streaming platforms), the powerful trade union center SAG-AFTRA, which defends the interests of more than 160,000 actors and actresses in Hollywood, has just officially voted unanimously for a strike in the wake of the non-renewal of the collective agreements signed with the industry, which expired on July 12. The strike begins this Friday, July 14 at 9 a.m., Paris time. This is the first work stoppage for Hollywood actors and actresses since Ronald Reagan came to power in 1980, but also the first time since the 1960s that a strike by actors has overlapped with that of screenwriters. , which began last May.
During a press conference in Sherman Oaks officially announcing the start of the movement, this Thursday, July 13 at noon (Los Angeles time, 9 p.m. Paris time), the union recalled the reasons for the anger and its demands: compensation financial deemed insufficient in the face of the shrinking volume of TV series (now composed of around ten episodes against more than 20 until the 2010s), as well as longer periods of inactivity between each season; an imperative improvement in the financing of pensions and health insurance; better payouts from streaming platforms; and, more sensitive than ever, a strict framework for the use of artificial intelligence, considered by SAG-AFTRA to be “a real and immediate threat to the work of our members and which can imitate their voice, appearance and performance. . The union demands in particular the prior consent of the actors for any use of their skills in the improvement of AI systems.
Particularly raised to the microphone during her press conference in Sherman Oaks, actress and president of SAG-AFTRA Fran Drescher (ex-star of the series A Nanny) literally pilloried the AMPTP: “The strike is really our last resort and we were convinced until the last moment that we could avoid it. This is what happens when our employers (studios and streaming platforms – editor’s note) favor Wall Street and greed, forgetting the essential contributors who keep the Hollywood machine running. This is a matter we do not take lightly and it is with great sadness that we cross this line but we have no choice. »
Supported by National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the Union President continued, “I am shocked at the way these people we have worked with for years are treating us. To make us believe that they are losing money while redistributing massive sums to their shareholders is simply disgusting. Shame on them ! They are on the wrong side of history. The whole business model of this sector has completely changed because of digital, streaming and artificial intelligence, we are in a moment of truth and if we do not rise up now, we will all be in danger of being replaced by machines ! But why are you doing this to us? ! There’s no way we’re just moving furniture around on the Titanic. Wake up, AMPTP! We hold our heads up high and you can’t exist without us! »
Pickets will be in place as of Friday at 9 a.m. CST, as the strike will immediately shut down filming and filming of SAG-AFTRA unionized actors and actresses in the U.S. and abroad. . It’s the whole Hollywood machine that could suddenly freeze in the hours to come.
In a statement released Thursday ahead of the press conference, Fran Drescher also said, “The AMPTP’s responses to the union’s most important proposals are insulting and disrespectful to our massive contribution to this industry. The companies have refused to engage meaningfully on several issues and are filibustering on others. Until they decide to negotiate in good faith, it is impossible for us to reach an agreement. We have no choice but to move forward in unity and recommend a strike to our national office.” The announcement of this Thursday evening was therefore expected.
The effects of this new strike will very quickly cripple much of the activity of the entertainment sector, from the halting of filming to the immediate interruption by unionized actors of their promotional duties. The actors of Oppenheimer thus left London abruptly, this Thursday, even before the British preview of the film, in order to be present on time on the pickets this Friday in Hollywood.