Hollywood actors' four month strike is now at an end

Culture
09 Nov 23

Photo: Fran Drescher Instagram

The SAG-AFTRA union agrees tentative deal to end four-month strike today

SAG-AFTRA reached agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and TV Producers (AMPTP) in an unanimous vote at midnight Thursday November 9th - ending a four month strike that brought Hollywood to a halt.

The shutdown - combined with a separate writers' strike - paralysed the entertainment industry and disrupted numerous major films and TV shows.

The SAG-AFTRA union on Twitter posted a triumphant message on X, saying that details of celebration parties across the country were to follow.

THE #SagAftraStrike IS OVER.

🧵 Thread below. pic.twitter.com/KDTl9uKBRt

— SAG-AFTRA (@sagaftra) November 9, 2023

The Actors' Union had been calling for better pay over the issue of residuals and safeguards on the use of AI to replicate an actor's likeness.

The new agreement, valued at $1 billion, according to the a union statement includes "above-pattern" minimum compensation increases, unprecedented provisions for consent and compensation that will protect members from the threat of AI, and and for the first time establishes a streaming participation bonus. Our Pension & Health caps have been substantially raised, which will bring much needed value to our plans".

SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher posted on Instagram in jubilant fashion saying: "We did it!!!!"

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A post shared by Fran Drescher (@officialfrandrescher)

The president thanked members "for hanging in and holding out for this historic deal!"

Hollywood stars have taken to social media. Among them, Jamie Lee Curtis who posted on Instagram "perseverance pays off'

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A post shared by Jamie Lee Curtis (@jamieleecurtis)

Other celebs who echoed these sentiments and expressed their congratulations both on social media and the red carpet were Oscar Winner Octavia Spencer, Alec Baldwin, Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White.

SAG-AFTRA chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland told Reuters there were "definitely some tears, a lot of big smiles, a lot of hugs" when the agreement was reached.

The three-year contract would "make a long-term difference for the future of our members in this industry", he said.

The union said the deal was valued at more than $1bn (£814m) and included increases in minimum salaries, a new "streaming participation" bonus, and more protections against their images and voices being replicated by artificial intelligence.

SAG-AFTRA said the strike would officially end on today, with more details released following a meeting tomorrow, Friday the 10th of November.

Union negotiating committee member Kevin E West told Variety that there were "tears of exhilaration and joy" after the contract was approved, but that the agreement was "not perfect".

Fellow committee member Shaan Sharma told the New York Times he had mixed emotions because not all of the union's demands were met.

"You can be happy for the deal overall, but you can feel a sense of loss for something that you didn't get that you thought was important," he said.

AMPTP said it was pleased to have reached the tentative agreement and "looks forward to the industry resuming the work of telling great stories".

As well as film delays, Hollywood stars have also not been attending some events such as premieres while the strike has been taking place, as union rules prohibit them from taking any work, including publicity for projects.

Major productions have been put on hold such as Disney/Marvel's Blade, Dune: Part Two and Fantastic Four which have all been delayed by several months. While Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars have been pushed back by a year.

Actors had also not been allowed to attend awards ceremonies either, meaning the Emmys - TV's biggest night - were delayed from their usual September slot.

The Emmys ceremony will take place in January instead, and organisers of events like the Oscars are likely to be breathing a sigh of relief that stars can hit the red carpet when the movie awards season kicks off in the New Year.