Hollywood’s actors’ union voted to strike if talks over higher wages fall through before the end of June, adding pressure to major film and television studios already facing an ongoing writers’ work stoppage.
After the vote closed on Monday, SAG-AFTRA said 97.91 percent of votes cast supported a strike. Almost 65,000 members, about 48 percent of the total membership, cast their vote.
Union membership is mandatory for all professional actors working on major American productions, as nearly all studios and producers have union contracts that allow them to employ only union members.
While members are people from all walks of life, famous actors and actresses who have talked about how they first got SAG cards include Jennifer Lawrence, Neil Patrick Harris, and Anne Hathaway.
The decision to strike worsens the climate in Hollywood, where studios also have problems with writers and directors. On Sunday, studios likely avoided a second work stoppage by striking a tentative deal with the Directors Guild of America (DGA).
Hollywood’s actors’ union voted to strike if talks over higher wages fall through before the end of June, adding pressure to major film and television studios already facing an ongoing writers’ work stoppage (pictured on May 8)
Jennifer Lawrence (left) has said the day she got her SAG card, aged 14, was the best day of her life. Anne Hathaway (right) was also 14 when she joined the union
Neil Patrick Harris (left) said he joined a union after working on the TV show Throb. Amanda Seyfried (right) is seen at the premiere of ‘The Crowded Room’ at the Museum of Modern Art on June 1
Members of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists include actors, broadcast journalists, announcers, hosts, and stunt performers.
Bravo SAG-AFTRA. We’re in to win it,” Fran Drescher, the union’s president, said in a statement after the vote. She had previously been seen at writers’ guild pickets in solidarity.
Talks between the 160,000-member actors’ union, Hollywood’s largest, and the major studios are scheduled for Wednesday and should be finalized and settled before their current deal expires on June 30.
Key issues for actors include their base pay, which they say has been hit by inflation and streaming, the threat of AI, benefits and the obligation for them to record auditions themselves – the cost of which used to be the responsibility of casting and production .
For many members, joining the union marked the beginning of their professional careers – an occasion of sentimental significance.
“I got my SAG card when I was 14,” said Anne Hathaway as she picked up an Oscar for Outstanding Supporting Actress for her role in Les Misérables in 2013.
“It felt like the beginning of the world. I loved every minute of my life as an actor. And I’ve received so much kindness and support from actors in this room and beyond,” she said.
Jennifer Lawrence said the day she received her card was the best day of her life during her acceptance speech for Best Actress at the 2013 Screen Actors Guild Awards.
“I got it on a TV show called Throb,” Neil Patrick Harris told TV Guide how he joined a union. “I played a little kid stalking Jane Leeves.”
SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher is interviewed at a Writers Guild of America meeting outside the Paramount Pictures studio on May 8 in Los Angeles
Actor Michael Rapaport joins Writers Guild of America members at Netflix’s NYC offices on May 3 in their labor dispute against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
While the actors are only now agreeing to a possible strike, the writers’ guild, WGA, continues to strike.
So far, their strike has disrupted nighttime show production and halted high-profile projects, including a new season of Netflix’s Stranger Things and a Game of Thrones spinoff for Warner Bros. Discovery’s HBO.
The recently agreed pact will take effect as DGA members vote to ratify it in the coming weeks. Terms are not yet known, but no new negotiations are planned with the writers’ guild, a smaller group representing 11,500 film and TV writers.
An actor strike, therefore, would lead to a wider shutdown across Hollywood and increase pressure on studios that need programming to feed their streaming services and fall TV broadcast schedule.
Regarding the actors, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents Walt Disney Co, Netflix Inc and other studios, said: “We are approaching these negotiations with the goal of reaching a new agreement beneficial to SAG-AFTRA. members and the industry in general.’
SAG-AFTRA leaders said the industry had changed dramatically with the rise of streaming television and the emergence of new technology such as generative AI.
The upcoming talks “may be one of the most sweeping negotiations in the union’s history,” said chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland.
“Inflation, dwindling streams due to streaming and generative AI all threaten the ability of actors to make a living if our contracts are not adapted to the new reality,” he said.
Members of the Writers Guild of America seize Netflix’s NYC offices on May 3 in their labor dispute against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers
“Together we close elbows and in unity we build a new contract that honors our contributions in this remarkable industry, reflects the new digital and streaming business model and brings all our concerns for protection and benefits to the present day,” said SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher.
The Nanny star, 65, took to Twitter on Thursday to urge all members to take part in the vote.
“It is very important that everyone supports this action, and we had 100 percent support in your elected national council, everyone agreed, as did everyone on the negotiating committee,” she said.
The last time actors went on strike was in 2000 over a dispute over their advertising contract. It started on May 1 and lasted six months until October 30.
It’s one of the longest work stoppages ever seen in Hollywood.