Actors returned to the picket lines on Thursday, facing an uncertain future after contract talks with Hollywood studios broke off, raising concerns of a prolonged impasse.
The negotiations between SAG-AFTRA performers’ union and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers took place on Wednesday, but both sides announced that the talks had collapsed.
“Despite the fact that last week they presented an offer worth less than what they proposed before the strike began, we negotiated with them in good faith,” stated SAG-AFTRA on Wednesday evening.
The union accused the studio CEOs of walking away from the bargaining table after refusing to respond to their latest offer.
The AMPTP, representing the studios, stated that negotiations were suspended after SAG-AFTRA presented their most recent proposal on October 11. They stated that the gap between the two sides was too wide and that discussions were no longer productive.
The two parties had met five times since October 2, their first talks since the SAG-AFTRA strike began on July 14, including a meeting on Wednesday.
SAG-AFTRA’s demands include wage increases, protections against the use of actor images through artificial intelligence, higher compensation for successful streaming programs, and improvements in health and retirement benefits.
In their statement on Wednesday night, the union claimed that the studios “refuse to protect performers from being replaced by AI, they refuse to increase your wages to keep up with inflation, and they refuse to share a tiny portion of the immense revenue your work generates for them.”
“We have made significant meaningful counters on our end, including completely transforming our revenue share proposal, which would cost the companies less than 57 cents per subscriber each year. They have rejected our proposals and refused to respond.”
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, who participated in the talks with other major studio heads, stated during a Bloomberg conference on Thursday that the negotiations fell apart due to a union proposal to add a “levy” on every streaming service subscriber.
Sarandos explained that the union rejected a revenue model based on success, similar to the one the Writers Guild of America accepted but at a higher cost.
“That proposal was rejected, and instead, they proposed a levy on every subscriber. We felt it was too much to add this deep into the negotiation,” Sarandos said.
The Writers Guild of America ended their strike against the studios on September 27. The agreement was ratified by the WGA members earlier this week, putting an end to the strike that started on May 2.
SAG-AFTRA accused the studios of using “bully tactics” and intentionally misrepresenting the cost of their proposal, exaggerating it by 60%.
“The companies are employing the same failed strategy they used against the WGA, spreading misleading information to try and deceive our members and put pressure on our negotiators,” the union stated. “But, like the writers, our members are smarter and won’t be fooled.”
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