The SAG-AFTRA strike continues as Hollywood actors claim that studios are bullying them. The actors guild says that the AMPTP is using “bully tactics.” This is “The same failed strategy they tried to inflict on the WGA” to prevent negotiating a fair deal.
The studios say that the actor’s demands are unreasonable and keep any progress or forward movement from occurring.
The SAG-AFTRA said that they are standing their ground. They won’t allow the massive greed of the studios to derail their goals.
Artificial Intelligence May Be a Dealbreaker
The actors have been striking due to concerns over artificial intelligence. Also, lack of fair pay for streaming programming residuals and fighting for health and retirement benefits improvements.
A more precise explanation of the concerns regarding AI involves proposed provisions for background actors. The studios want the background actors to be scanned and receive only one day’s pay.
The company would own that scan of their image and would be able to use it for the rest of eternity if they feel it is necessary without compensating the actors for that image.
The studios greedily pretend to get the actor’s consent but demand it on the first day of work to use the images for any project they want until the end of time.
This scenario would severely cut the actor’s pay, which they depend on for their livelihood. The proposed “negotiations” this time around are for much less than the original offer from the studios.
The studios are, essentially, trying to teach the actors a lesson by holding out and not giving in to the actor’s demands.
For the time being, it looks like talks have been suspended. There is extreme pressure throughout Hollywood for everyone to get back to work.
The actors continued to try to have their demands met following the WGA reaching a deal with the studios on September 27th at midnight.
The main issue for the studios is the revenue-sharing proposal by the actors. The studios rejected the actor’s demands concerning AI from the get-go.
Studios Are Trying to Bully the Actors
The studios tried to do to SAG-AFTRA what they initially did with the WGA to go directly to members and make their demands public.
The studios claimed that the proposed deal from SAG-AFTRA would reportedly cost the studios $2.4 billion over three years, or to break it down, more than $800 million per year. However, it was later confirmed that these numbers are incorrect and may not be near that costly.
Conversations between the studios and the actors are no longer progressing in an encouraging direction.
The actors union stated,
“We have negotiated with them in good faith, despite the fact that last week, they presented an offer that was, shockingly worth less than they proposed before the strike began.”
SAG-AFTRA continued to explain that the studios are doing to the actors what they did to the writers, releasing misleading information to break apart the union and pressure the negotiators to make a deal that isn’t worthy of them or their work.
So, the strike continues. Hopefully, the actors and studios can compromise to benefit everyone involved.
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