Meryl Streep, Mark Ruffalo, and Brendan Fraser are among the many actors prepared to strike if SAG-AFTRA does not reach a fair deal with the AMPTP amid ongoing negotiations. 97.91% of SAG-AFTRA overwhelmingly voted to approve a strike authorization, meaning that if negotiations with the AMPTP fall through at the end of June, union will go on strike. If this occurs, it would mean a complete shutdown of all current film and television productions that are currently filming amid the writers strike, including the popular Star Wars show Andor.
Via Rolling Stone, more than 300 actors have signed an open letter urging SAG-AFTRA not to settle for a basic deal with the studios, signaling their willingness to strike is a deal cannot be reached. While SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher recently released a video to stating that discussions have been "extremely productive," many actors do not believe that a fair deal will be reached, stating that "SAG-AFTRA may be ready to make sacrifices that leadership is not." Check out an excerpt of the letter below:
We do not believe that SAG-AFTRA can afford to make halfway gains in anticipation that more will be coming in three years, and we think it is absolutely vital that this negotiation protects not just our likenesses, but makes sure we are well compensated when any of our work is used to train AI.
We want you to know that we would rather go on strike than compromise on these fundamental points, and we believe that, if we settle for a less than transformative deal, the future of our union and our craft will be undermined, and SAG-AFTRA will enter the next negotiation with drastically reduced leverage.
If you are not able to get all the way there, we ask that you use the power given to you by us, the hip, and the WGA on the picket lines. For our union and its future, this is our moment. We hope that, on our behalf, you will meet that moment and not miss it.
The Potential SAG-AFTRA Strike Explained
While SAG-AFTRA are not on strike yet, they have until June 30 to negotiate a fair deal with the AMPTP. If a deal isn't reached by then, actors will go on strike at midnight on July 1 and the writers who have been striking since May 2. According to SAG-AFTRA, many issues are on the table with the studios, including the acceptable use of AI when creating an actor's likeness, fair residual payments, increased compensation, and reasonable rules around self-taped auditions. These issues mirror many of the key points of the Writers Guild of America strike, particularly with streaming residuals and the unregulated use of AI to write a screenplay.
While it is still unclear if SAG-AFTRA will go on strike, many studios are still bracing for impact and preparing for potential disruption. It was announced that Marvel Studios, Universal, HBO, Sony, and Netflix would skip the 2023 edition of San Diego Comic-Con as they would not have actors available to promote future projects. Disney also reshuffled most of their planned releases, as some of their productions, including Daredevil: Born Again, Blade, and Thunderbolts, have been paused due to the WGA strike and could be put on hold indefinitely if an actors' strike occurs.
Before the AMPTP entered negotiations with SAG-AFTRA, the association reached a new contract with the Directors Guild of America, which was ratified on June 23. This could mean that the AMPTP would be willing to reach a deal with SAG-AFTRA, but it may not be as clear-cut as that. Many actors are still willing to go on strike if their demands aren't met, even if a tentative deal is reached on June 30. Time will tell in which direction SAG-AFTRA will go when negotiations with the studios end soon.
Source: Rolling Stone
