2023-07-13 22:49:23
By Le Figaro with AFP
Posted yesterday at 21:14, Updated yesterday at 22:49
A generalization of the social conflict, first initiated by the screenwriters, could completely shut down the sector and threaten the release of films this summer. MARIO TAMA/Getty Images via AFP
The failure of negotiations between union and studios over a salary increase propels the sector into its heaviest dispute since the 1960s.
Nothing is going right in Hollywood anymore. After the failure of negotiations between the major American studios and the powerful actors’ union, which denounced salary proposals “insulting», the actors have decided to officially go on strike. “The SAG-AFTRA National Council Voted Unanimously for a Strike Order Against Studios and Broadcasters”, announced Thursday evening Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the national executive director of this union which represents 160,000 actors and other professionals of the small and big screen. The strike will begin at midnight Thursday evening at midnight Los Angeles time, or 07:00 GMT on Friday, the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA announced after negotiations with studios and streaming platforms broke down.
“We had no choice. We are the victims. We are victims of a very greedy entity,” lambasted Fran Drescher, the union’s president. “It’s a historic moment”insisted the ex-star of the series A nanny from hell. “If we don’t stand up now…we all risk being replaced by machines and big corporations that care more about Wall Street than you and your family.” «After more than four weeks of negotiations“, the previous agreement expired Wednesday evening at midnight without any hope of conciliation, had noted the union SAG-AFTRA, main representative of the American actors, earlier in the day. Its positions are far too far removed from those of the AMPTP.
Towards a possible postponement of the Emmy Awards
By joining the screenwriters on the picket lines, the actors provoke a double social movement never seen since 1960 in Hollywood. The two trades are demanding an increase in their remuneration, at half mast in the era of streaming. They also want to obtain guarantees regarding the use of artificial intelligence (AI), to prevent the latter from generating scripts or cloning their voice and image. The entry on strike of the actors will deal a hell of a blow to the industry. The Alliance of Film and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represented studios and streaming platforms in the negotiations, said it “very disapointed” of their failure. Disney boss Bob Iger even blasted demands “unrealistic” on the CNBC channel.
Since May, the only productions that have decided to shoot do so on the basis of scripts already completed in the spring, without being able to modify them. This is particularly the case of the Lord of the Rings prequel financed by Amazon, Rings of Power. But, without actors, filming will simply not be possible. Only a few talk shows and reality TV shows could continue. The actors will also seriously seize up the promotion of this summer’s blockbusters, such as the highly anticipated Oppenheimer by Christopher Nolan. At the film’s London premiere on Thursday, the film’s cast left the event in a show of solidarity, according to Variety. The American premiere of the film, scheduled for Monday in New York, is likely to be reduced to a minimum.
Read alsoIn Hollywood, the threat of a strike by screenwriters puts the studios in turmoil
The absence of comedians on the red carpets would leave a big void in California. Comic-Con, the high mass of American geeks and comic book lovers, should take place without stars from July 20 in San Diego. Before the strike, Disney explained that the launch of its new film, The haunted mansionwould be reduced to a “private eventfor fans during the weekend in the event of a social movement. Even the Emmy Awards ceremony, equivalent to the Oscars for TV, scheduled for September 18, is threatened. The production is already considering postponing the event to November, or even to 2024, according to the American press. Because no one knows how long the movement could last. Actors have not gone on strike since 1980. The last scriptwriters’ strike, which dates back to 2007-2008, lasted 100 days and cost the sector two billion dollars.
Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence or Ben Stiller among the signatories
This double strike thus confirms the existential crisis currently affecting Hollywood. In late June, hundreds of famous actors, including Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence and Ben Stiller, signed a letter saying their industry is at a “unprecedented inflection point“. For the past ten years, the advent of streaming has upset the remuneration “residual» actors and screenwriters, resulting from each rerun of a film or series.
Read alsoIn Hollywood, the hour of revolt has come
Interesting with television because calculated according to the price of advertisements, these emoluments are much lower with streaming platforms, which do not communicate their audience figures and pay a flat rate, regardless of success. Without this essential income to absorb the periods of inactivity between two productions, the many workers who do not have the status of actor or star author denounce a precariousness of their profession. The rapid development of artificial intelligence, which threatens to replace them, only adds fuel to the fire. Disney, for example, used AI to produce the credits for its new series launched in June, Secret Invasion .
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