(Los Angeles) The Hollywood actors’ union announced Monday that it was still not satisfied with the proposals of the studios, which sent it a text presented as their “last” offer to put an end to the strike which paralyzes the production of American films and series for months.
“There are several essential points on which we still do not have agreement, including on artificial intelligence,” SAG-AFTRA, which represents 160,000 actors, dancers, stuntmen and other professionals, told X small and big screen.
Despite the end of the writers’ strike in September, several rounds of negotiations between actors and studios took place, during which the gap between the two parties narrowed, without reaching a compromise.
On Saturday, the studios announced that they would send their “last, best and final” offer to the union. In other words, the employers refused to make any additional concessions.
This proposal provides for a largely increased rebroadcast bonus for actors playing in series or films that are a hit on streaming platforms, as well as a sharp increase in minimum salaries and safeguards to regulate the use of artificial intelligence, according to the specialist magazine Variety.
But the legal jargon surrounding the question of AI is particularly scrutinized by the union, which visibly still harbors differences with the employers.
The actors, who went on strike in mid-July, fear that studios will use this technology to clone their voices and images, in order to reuse them in perpetuity without compensation or consent.
” Troubled waters ”
SAG-AFTRA said Monday it was “committed to getting the right deal and ending the strike responsibly.” »
“We will keep you informed as developments arise,” the union added.
“We are at the negotiating table and we are working very hard to achieve it,” Netflix boss Ted Sarandos told AFP, assuring that an agreement seemed “very close”.
“But you know, these are complicated agreements and we are navigating in troubled waters,” he added.
The pressure on Hollywood to find a way out of this social movement has increased in recent weeks, as the strike costs billions of dollars to the sector and the Californian economy.
Unfilmed actors are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet, and studios are facing gaping holes in their release schedules for next year and beyond.
In recent weeks, the CEOs of Disney, Netflix, Warner Bros and Universal have become directly involved in talks to break the impasse.
After the postponement of major productions, such as the second part of the saga Dune or the series Stranger Thingsthe studios want to get back to work as quickly as possible.
“Our goal is to get people back to work. “It’s a huge burden on everyone in this city,” Sarandos continued. “We’re really trying to get things done. »
Hollywood has not experienced a simultaneous strike by writers and actors since 1960.