The knives are out in Hollywood. The entertainment industry was already reeling from the ongoing writers’ strike, but the SAG-AFTRA actors’ strike has seen studios scrambling to figure out what, if anything, they can keep producing.
Neither side is giving an inch and things are getting acrimonious, as shown by studios’ representatives the AMPTP claiming that SAG-AFTRA is “deliberately distorting” the rejected offer they made in an attempt to stop the strike.
At these negotiations SAG-AFTRA sought a new contract that’d see an 11 percent wage increase in the first year, then four percent over the next two years. The studios countered with an offer of five, four and three percent increases, together with a “verbal agreement” that they insist is “valued at over $1 billion in wage improvements, residual increases and pension and health contributions.”
$1 billion is a big number, though we suspect there may be more than a little creative accounting from the AMPTP to hit that figure, never mind the reality of how that would eventually filter down to each individual worker.
However the math adds up, it’s clear that both sides are far from a deal and the strike looks set to continue for the foreseeable future. Major productions like Deadpool 3, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part II, and Venom 3 have now shut down or been delayed.
It’s worth remembering that those on strike would very much like to return to work as soon as studios recognize their worth, so let’s hope the billionaires running the industry realize their fabulous wealth is built on top of the backs of the talent both in front of and behind the camera.