Hollywood
After the deadline: strike recommendation in the US acting industry
Fran Drescher is president of the actors’ union, which recommends that actors go on strike. photo
© Chris Pizzello/AP/dpa
A strike would be another severe blow to the entertainment industry in the US, as screenwriters have already walked out of work since May 2nd. What’s next?
After the deadline to reach an agreement in poker over more money and other demands for US actors, the union’s bargaining committee issued a strike recommendation. The board of directors will now vote on whether to go on strike, the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA said on Thursday morning. The union wants to inform about the result on Thursday at 12 noon local time (9 p.m. in Germany) at a press conference in Los Angeles.
A strike would be another hard blow to the entertainment industry in the United States USA, because the screenwriters have already stopped working since May 2nd.
The actors’ union had threatened to go on strike if no agreement was reached by midnight on Wednesday (11:59 p.m. in Los Angeles, 8:59 a.m. CEST). Among other things, the actors are demanding better remuneration and regulation of the use of artificial intelligence in the industry.
Both creative industries – authors and actors – are suffering from the fact that more films and series are being produced, but budgets are falling and series are often shot with fewer episodes per season. In addition, unlike on television, repetitions with streaming providers bring lower royalties for the creatives and are independent of the number of viewers.
The SAG-AFTRA union, chaired by actress Fran Drescher (“The Nanny”), has more than 160,000 members, including film and television actors, stunt performers, TV journalists and presenters. A strike would only affect actors and actresses for series and films. It would be binding for all of them, they would not be allowed to work in front of the camera.
Around 65,000 union members took part in a ballot on June 7, and 97.9 percent were in favor of a strike. In addition, stars such as Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Ben Stiller and Pedro Pascal publicly expressed their solidarity.
The scriptwriters’ strike is already having an impact on viewers, for example many late-night shows can no longer be broadcast as usual. According to estimates by US media, films and series could hardly be shot in the event of a double strike.