SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher, center, Ben Whitehair, left, and Joely Fisher attend a press conference announcing a strike by The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists on Thursday, July, 13, 2023, in Los Angeles.
In recent weeks, many actors made a show of solidarity with writers, who walked out in May. Now 65,000 members of the actors’ union will formally join them on strike.The two guilds have similar issues with studios and streaming services. They are concerned about contracts keeping up with inflation and about residual payments, which compensate creators and actors for use of their material beyond the original airing, such as in reruns or on streaming services.
No talks are planned, and no end is in sight for the work stoppage. It is the first time both guilds have walked off sets since 1960, when then-actor Ronald Reagan was SAG’s leader.