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By Jacob Pamus
Photos via Wikimedia Commons
July 14, 2023 (Hollywood, CA) – 
The Writers’ Guild of America (WGA) has been on strike in Hollywood since May 2nd, meaning that all writing for film and television has halted. Now on July 13th, after the Screen Actors Guild- American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) has failed to negotiate with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), they have decided to join the strike with the WGA. This means that along with all writing, all acting in Hollywood has halted as well.
This is mainly because the AMPTP has failed “to offer a fair deal on key issues essential to protecting the livelihoods of working actors and performers,” according to SAG-AFTRA. The AMPTP has proposed that actors grant rights for use of their images created through artificial intelligence (AI). The film industry wants to obtain the likeness of actors, pay them a flat fee, then use their likeness forever without being paid again. This would make it extremely difficult for actors to obtain a liveable wage in the future.
Photo: Hollywood writers on strike near Paramount Studios in June 2023, by Taurus Emerald via Wikimedia Commons
On the same day that the negotiations with the SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP broke down, Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney made a statement. He said on CNBC “It’s very disturbing to me. We’ve talked about disruptive forces on this business and all the challenges we’re facing, the recovery from COVID which is ongoing, it’s not completely back. This is the worst time in the world to add to that disruption.” He explained that he believes this is simply not the time for a strike.
But writers and actors may not be able to keep their homes or pay for basic necessities, if changes are not made to the film industry’s demands. For them, the strike is critical to protect their rights to control their own images and protect their careers.
Photo: Bob Iger, taken by Josh Hallet at Disney California Adventure in 2010, creative commons via Wikimedia
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