With its current contract running out in June, Hollywood actors union leader Duncan Crabtree-Ireland warned that the union has no problem going back on strike if the studios and streaming services don’t meet their demands.
Crabtree-Ireland, the National Executive Director of the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), spoke to the issues on January 8 and delivered two somewhat contradictory messages, Deadline reported.
On one hand, he said that negotiations are starting early ahead of the June 30 contract expiration date and are already promising, but on the other hand, he said they will still go on strike if they don’t like what is going on.
“I want to be crystal clear: We are not going to accept a deal that is not fair to our members,” the union boss said. “There is no reason there should need to be a strike because these companies should come to the table in good faith, as we are.”
And yet, he added, “I am certainly not going to rule out a strike. A strike is a possibility.”
The union has already been warning about a strike at least since December.
Hollywood has been struggling to make sense of the burgeoning new world in entertainment with the twin threat of streaming and artificial intelligence hanging over actors and producers like the Sword of Damocles.
With 170,000 members, SAG-AFTRA has been working to make sense of how their members will fare as streaming services continue to grow in importance and as AI looks to begin using their likenesses and voices without involving them directly.
Crabtree-Ireland says he is hopeful: “But with a start on February 9, with weeks and weeks of time for us to negotiate, there is no reason we shouldn’t be able to reach a deal.”
The union is also highly focused on a healthcare plan, demanding that the studios and streamers contribute up to $110 million to keep the policy afloat.
The entire industry came to a grinding halt in 2023 when both the writers and the actors unions went on strike. Now that its three-year deal is coming to an end, the union is looking to initiate a fresh five-year deal.
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