Screen Actors Guild Announces Strike, Joining Writers on Picket Lines

The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) announced a labor strike after negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) failed to produce a deal. 

Details: The SAG union represents 160,000 film and television actors. The union now joins the Writers Guild of America, which has been on strike since early May. It has been 62 years since both unions went on strike simultaneously.

Key Quotes: A statement from SAG President Fran Drescher read, “SAG-AFTRA negotiated in good faith and was eager to reach a deal that sufficiently addressed performer needs, but the AMPTP’s responses to the union’s most important proposals have been insulting and disrespectful of our massive contributions to this industry. The companies have refused to meaningfully engage on some topics and on others completely stonewalled us. Until they do negotiate in good faith, we cannot begin to reach a deal.” AMPTP responded with its own statement, reading, “We are deeply disappointed that SAG-AFTRA has decided to walk away from negotiations. This is the Union's choice, not ours. In doing so, it has dismissed our offer of historic pay and residual increases, substantially higher caps on pensions and health contributions, audition protections, shortened series option periods, a groundbreaking AI proposal that protects actors' digital likenesses and more.”

How the Media Covered It: The Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias) paired the SGA President’s statement with a statement from the AMPTP, while HuffPost (Left bias) and Reuters (Center bias) instead used recent quotes from studio executives that stirred controversy online.