SAG-AFTRA just struck a new tentative deal with Hollywood’s major studios — effectively ending the actors’ strike … this after more than 100 days of picketing.
The guild announced Wednesday they’d come to terms with the AMPTP for a new 3-year contract that’ll allow union actors to get back to work … and let showbiz get back on track after the lengthy stalemate.
SAG said, “In a unanimous vote this afternoon, The SAG-AFTRA TV/Theatrical Committee approved a tentative agreement with the AMPTP bringing an end to the 118 day strike.” They added that the strike would officially end at 12:01 AM on Thursday, November 9.
The terms of the deal have yet to be publicly disclosed, but there’s been a lot of reporting on what the sticking points were in this final stretch — by most accounts, the language surrounding AI protections was what SAG was nitpicking over these past several days.
One report from THR suggested the studios wanted to be able to scan actors for a one-time fee — including dead actors, BTW — and be able to use their image/likeness for future projects … but SAG apparently said that was a nonstarter, demanding more red tape and extra pay for any reuse of the AI scans down the line … including the actor’s permission.
We’ll see what they ultimately landed on — but presumably, it’s something that SAG considered fair for their members, for now at least. They’ll go back to the table soon enough, and we’re sure this whole process will start all over again — hopefully, less dramatically.
There are rumblings of SAG actors also getting better pay/on-set conditions guaranteed in this new deal. The union’s board and members still need to ratify it … but it sounds like it’s over.
Of course, this comes about a month or so after the WGA secured its own new contract.