The longest actors strike in history against film and television studios has finally ended.
As of Thursday morning, actors were free to work again as their union – SAG-AFTRA – had a tentative agreement in hand. It still needs to be ratified, but it includes pay raises, protections against artificial intelligence, and streaming bonuses.
To date, the studio head has not responded to NPR’s request for an interview. In a statement, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers called the proposed agreement “a new model” and said it “looks forward to the industry continuing its work of telling great stories.”
SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher spoke with All Things considered host Ailsa Chang on Thursday about the deal.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Ailsa Chang: First I should note that the NPR News staff is also a member of SAG-AFTRA, but we are under a different contract. We are not on strike. We have been working all this time. Now you guys get to work. So tell me, Fran, after nearly four months of attracting actors, what do you think was the breakthrough that led to this deal?
Fran Drescher: Well, we’ve been making progress throughout the strike, except, of course, since AMPTP decided they were going to withdraw or they themselves were considering taking some time before coming back to a counter-proposal. So, you know, time is often very productive. And once we really get to a place where they not only really fully grasp the idea that this is a new dawn, this is new leadership, that this is a historic moment and this requires a deep negotiation – then whatever it is we’re talking about whatever we feel we need, they decide to think it through and group together to come up with their own version of the solution Surname.
Chang: Let me talk about that new dawn, as you mentioned. Do you think the AI protections in this contract are broad enough to keep up with this rapidly evolving technology? Or do you think, Fran, you’re going to have to renegotiate this whole AI thing in three years when this contract expires?
