It's been 63 years since actors and writers have stopped work at the same time. Hollywood actors went on strike on Thursday July 13, after talks with studios broke down, joining film and television writers who have been on picket lines since May and deepening the disruption of scores of shows and movies. The annoucemnet was mada by SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher and executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, following a unanimous vote by the union’s national board.
Some 160,000 actors in the United States, from major stars to background players, are refusing to work after talks failed between their union, the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
Production has already slowed without writers, but the joint strike will likely bring most non-reality American television and movie making to a halt. It could also throw a wrench into promotional campaigns for summer blockbusters and awards shows like the Emmys.
Actors have complained about the changing nature of residuals, payments traditionally linked to re-runs of a show or sales in a foreign market. Streaming has changed the way those payments are accounted for and in many cases reduced them significantly, and as more entertainment companies move toward that model, actors—particularly those who are new to the business or aren’t mega-stars—fear that their pay will plunge.
Photo: Mike Blake (Reuters)
Hollywood actors are now on strike supporting the writers
