With five days to go, SAG-AFTRA is stepping up its efforts to prepare for going on strike even as contract negotiations with Hollywood’s major studios intensify.
On Thursday, SAG-AFTRA distributed a survey to its 160,000 members and alerted them that the union would be calling for volunteers to help make signs, work phone banks, distribute T-shirts and generally support a mobilization of pickets on the streets of Los Angeles, New York and selected other locations. The email message includes a survey of members’ availability to picket outside studio gates, New York offices and other key locations. Thursday’s communication was the second part of the initial survey questions sent to members on Wednesday.
SAG-AFTRA members have already been out in force on picketing efforts mounted by the Writers Guild of America, which went on strike May 2. Many rank-and-file SAG-AFTRA members are fired up about issues on the table in this difficult season of Hollywood labor negotiations. By contrast, the Directors Guild of America has ratified a new three-year contract in a deal reached last month without much drama.
SAG-AFTRA has been in contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers on and off since June 7. The union’s most recent contract expired on June 30. SAG-AFTRA last week agreed to extend the time for negotiations to midnight PT on July 12.
SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP have agreed to a media blackout while negotiations are ongoing. Sources familiar with the situation said the talks have been difficult as the union has put a long list of issues on the table and have been slow to prioritize the deal-breakers in the bunch.
It’s no secret that SAG-AFTRA is looking for the studios and streamers to establish protections for actors against the technological threat posed by generative artificial intelligence. There union is also pushing for higher residual rates for streaming platforms and to address the rise of self-tape auditions that put the onus of producing video on actors.
SAG-AFTRA leaders Duncan Crabtree-Ireland and Fran Drescher raised the industry’s hopes of avoiding a historic double strike early last week when the pair delivered an optimistic assessment of the talks in a video message sent to members on June 24.
“I just want to assure you that we are having an extremely productive negotiations that are laser-focused on all of the crucial issues you told us are most important to you,” said Drescher, who is president of the union. “We’re standing strong and we’re going to achieve a seminal deal.”
But that positivity took a turn later in the week when a group of prominent actors called on SAG-AFTRA leaders to stand firm and be willing to strike to achieve important contract gains. Drescher herself wound up signing the letter endorsed by Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Poehler, Quinta Brunson, Laura Linney, Ben Stiller and Constance Wu, among hundreds of other signers.