“We had no choice”: Hollywood actors go on strike

Double strike in Hollywood: After the screenwriters, the actors in the US are now also laying down their jobs. After negotiations with the association of TV and film studios AMPTP failed to reach an agreement, work will be halted from Friday (00:01 Los Angeles time, 09:01 CEST), the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA made on Thursday in Los Angeles. According to media estimates, this means that films and series can hardly be shot in the US for the time being.

The actors demand, among other things, better compensation and regulation of the use of artificial intelligence in the industry. “We had no choice,” union leader Fran Drescher (“The Nanny”) said at a news conference. “We are the victims here. We are falling victim to a very greedy entity.” Members of her union should no longer be “marginalized and treated with disrespect and dishonor”.

Both parties had previously engaged an arbitrator. Despite this, no agreement could be reached within a deadline set by the actors’ union. “Honestly, I can’t believe how far apart we are on so many points,” Drescher said.

The association of TV and film studios AMPTP – which represents Netflix, Amazon, Apple and Disney, among others – defended itself. An attempt has been made to reach an agreement, the statement said. The union has now “unfortunately sought a way that will lead to financial hardship for the countless thousands of people who depend on the industry”.

Numerous actors and actresses expressed their support for the strike after the announcement. “We’re going to win this,” “Sex and the City” star Cynthia Nixon wrote on Twitter. Cast members including Josh Gad, Jamie Lee Curtis and Issa Rae also took to social media to show their support. The actors in the “Oppenheimer” film, including Matt Damon and Emily Blunt, left a premiere in London on Thursday after appearing on the red carpet in solidarity with the strike.

The strike is another blow to the entertainment industry in the US, as screenwriters have been out of work since May 2. Their strike is already impacting viewers. For example, many late night shows can no longer be broadcast as usual.

Both creative industries suffer from the fact that although more films and series are being produced, budgets are falling and series are often shot with fewer episodes per season. In addition, reruns on streaming providers, unlike on television, entail lower royalties for the creatives and are independent of the number of viewers.

The SAG-AFTRA union has more than 160,000 members, including film and television actors, stunt performers, TV journalists and presenters. However, the strike only affects actors and actresses for series and films. It is binding for all of them, they are no longer allowed to work in front of the camera until further notice. About 65,000 union members took part in a vote on June 7, and 97.9 percent voted for a strike. (sda/dpa)