Just two months after the Writers Guild Of America (WAG) began its strike, major Hollywood studios have been hit by a new protest by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). Around 65,000 actors and 11,500 writers, who are members of their respective unions, are striking against major producers of the industry. The latest strike by actors began on July 14. Notably, writers and actors are striking together after 60 years.
Due to the impact of the strike, reports over the weekend by several American outlets suggested that Sony Pictures has delayed the release of several of its projects. Spider Man: Beyond The Spider Verse, the third instalment in Sony’s popular animated series, Ghostbusters sequel and Kraven the Hunter are some of the projects that have been delayed by the studio.
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Not only Sony, Disney had also recently altered its film release schedule. Marvel projects, which include the next instalments in Captain America and The Avengers movies’ series, were delayed by the studio in light of the writers and actors strike.
Reacting to the strikes, Disney CEO Bob Iger had told CNBC that the expectations of both the unions were “not realistic”. He also said that the strikes would have a "very damaging effect on the whole industry”.
Why Are Writers And Actors Protesting?
At the centre of the recent strikes is the conflict over pay and the use of AI by studios. Both writers and actors have demanded better pay for their work, including residual payments for their works. Residual payments refer to the amount paid to the artists for reruns or streaming of their works. Writers have said that they want better assurances about fixed pay for their works. SAG-AFTRA had said that over around 50 per cent of its members earn less than $26,000. It is the amount actors have to make to qualify for health insurance.
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Along with the assurance for better payments, both the unions have called for agreement over use of artificial intelligence. The actors union had claimed that studios had proposed owning the likeness of the artists for future projects while writers have asked for limits on use of generative AI. Disney, Netflix and Sony are among the studios who have reportedly advertised for AI specialist positions, increasing the fears of artists.
