{"id":9046,"date":"2023-11-09T03:52:49","date_gmt":"2023-11-09T03:52:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lendingsensibly.com\/business\/actors-union-reaches-tentative-deal-with-hollywood-and-tv-studios-ending-historic-strike\/"},"modified":"2023-11-09T03:52:50","modified_gmt":"2023-11-09T03:52:50","slug":"actors-union-reaches-tentative-deal-with-hollywood-and-tv-studios-ending-historic-strike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lendingsensibly.com\/?p=9046","title":{"rendered":"Actors union reaches tentative deal with Hollywood and TV studios, ending historic strike"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Hollywood actors have reached a tentative agreement with the major film and television studios to end their historic strike, the actors union announced Wednesday. The strike had shut down production across the industry for nearly four months and raised existential questions over the future of the entertainment business.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents the studios, had been negotiating with the union off and on throughout the year to reach a deal. Both the AMPTP and the actors praised the deal.\n <\/p>\n

\n Union president Fran Drescher called the agreement \u201chistoric,\u201d and the studios said the agreement \u201crepresents a new paradigm\u201d for Hollywood, TV and the actors.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWe did it!!!! The Billion+ $ Deal! 3X the last contract! New ground was broke everywhere! Ty sag aftra members for hanging in and holding out for this historic deal!\u201d Drescher posted on Instagram Wednesday.\n <\/p>\n

\n The strike will officially end at midnight, the union said in a statement, concluding one of the longest and most disruptive strikes in Hollywood\u2019s history that brought the industry to a standstill.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cThe AMPTP is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement and looks forward to the industry resuming the work of telling great stories,\u201d the studios said in a statement.\n <\/p>\n

\n Terms of the deal, which still\u00a0needs to be ratified by the union\u2019s members before it can take effect, were not immediately disclosed. The union said it would not reveal them until the union\u2019s board has reviewed the deal.\n <\/p>\n

\n But in a statement to members, the union called the scope of the billion-dollar deal \u201cextraordinary,\u201d noting <\/strong>it includes significant increases in pay minimums, AI protections, and a streaming participation bonus, along with better benefits.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWe have arrived at a contract that will enable SAG-AFTRA members from every category to build sustainable careers,\u201d the union told members.\n <\/p>\n

\n The studios said in their statement that the actors will get \u201cthe biggest contract-on-contract gains in the history of the union, including the largest increase in minimum wages in the last forty years; a brand new residual for streaming programs; extensive consent and compensation protections in the use of artificial intelligence; and sizable contract increases on items across the board.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Drescher thanked the AMPTP \u201cfor hearing us and meeting this moment.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n The actors represented by SAG-AFTRA are to return to work after they walked off the set on July 14, joining the writers\u2019 guild in a historic double strike against the studios \u2013 the first time the writers and actors had simultaneously been on strike in more than 60 years.\n <\/p>\n

\n While the writers\u2019 strike was resolved in September, production has remained shuttered as the actors continued to strike and negotiate their contract. At the center of both standoffs is the rise of artificial intelligence, which threatens to upend the entire entertainment business.\n <\/p>\n

\n The deal could face challenges getting ratified. An online petition signed by more than 5,000 members recently urged the union to take a hard line in negotiations toward a final deal, saying they would not agree to a deal that did not meet the demands laid out at the start of the strike.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWe have not come all this way to cave now,\u201d said the letter. \u201cWe have not gone without work, without pay, and walked picket lines for months just to give up on everything we\u2019ve been fighting for. We cannot and will not accept a contract that fails to address the vital and existential problems that we all need fixed.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n A deal did not come easily \u2013 or quickly.\n <\/p>\n

\n After several fits and starts, the striking actors had resumed negotiations on October 2 with producers after a long time away from the bargaining table. The announcement to restart talks came a day after leaders of the Writers Guild of America voted to authorize its members to return to work following their tentative agreement reached September 24 between union negotiators and Hollywood\u2019s studios and streaming services.\n <\/p>\n

\n But the actors\u2019 contract negotiations didn\u2019t last long, breaking down on Oct. 11 before returning later in the month.\n <\/p>\n

\n By the end of October, it appeared the actors\u2019 strike was approaching its final scene. SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP had made significant progress in negotiating sessions, arriving at tentative understandings on key components of a potential deal, CNN reported.\n <\/p>\n

\n This past weekend, the studios said they delivered the union their \u201clast, best & final offer.\u201d But the union said in a message to its members that\u00a0there are several \u201cessential items\u201d that\u00a0the two sides\u00a0have yet to reach\u00a0agreement\u00a0on, such as\u00a0the use of\u00a0AI.\n <\/p>\n

\n Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Wednesday said she welcomed the resolution to the strike.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cI am grateful that a fair agreement has been reached between SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP after a more than 100 day strike that impacted millions in Los Angeles and throughout the country,\u201d Bass said. \u201cThose on the line have been the hardest hit during this period and there have been ripple effects throughout our entire city.\u201d\n <\/p>\n

\n Hollywood\u2019s most famous stars were eager to get back on set. George Clooney, Tyler Perry and other A-list actors offered to pay millions more in union dues to help end the actors\u2019 strike, a source with knowledge of the proposal previously told CNN.\n <\/p>\n

\n SAG-AFTRA\u2019s deal follows on the heels of the Writers Guild agreement, whose strike ended after 148 days. The WGA deal ramped up pressure for SAG-AFTRA to reach an agreement along the same lines. SAG-AFTRA joined the picket line a little over two months after the Writers Guild went on strike.\n <\/p>\n

\n Their contract, which will expire in May 2026, includes pay increases, better benefits, protections against the studios\u2019 use of artificial intelligence, guarantees for streaming compensation, longer-duration employment terms and other perks.\n <\/p>\n

\n \u201cWe\u2019re thrilled to see SAG-AFTRA members win a contract that creates new protections for performers and gives them a greater share of the immense value they create,\u201d the WGA said in a statement Wednesday.\n <\/p>\n

\n SAG-AFTRA\u2019s demands were similar to WGA\u2019s, particularly regarding artificial intelligence and residuals payments from streaming services for their work. WGA\u2019s ratified contract included assurances that AI cannot write or rewrite literary material and will require AI-generated materials to be disclosed to writers. Both actors and writers alike believe AI poses an existential threat to their livelihoods.\n <\/p>\n

\n A major sticking point during negotiations was SAG-AFTRA\u2019s demands for an 11% wage increase in the first year of the proposed contract term, while the studios had only agreed to a 5% pay raise.\n <\/p>\n

\n Work for many writers resumed promptly. Late night\u2019s biggest hosts \u2013 Jimmy Kimmel, Jimmy Fallon, Stephen Colbert, John Oliver and Seth Meyers \u2013 returned to the air quickly after the writers strike ended. But Hollywood actors have not appeared on their shows to promote their movies during the actors strike.\n <\/p>\n

\n The Hollywood strikes have been costly, with a nationwide economic impact of at least $5 billion, according to economists. The impacts have gone beyond production; it\u2019s affected local businesses and restaurants, as well as makeup artists and custodians.\n <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n