The Hollywood labor battle could expand next week.
The Screen Actors Guild is in the final hours of negotiations with Hollywood producers. If a deal is not reached by midnight Friday, at least 160,000 performers plan to join striking writers on the picket line.
SAG has been at the negotiating table for a month, with little sign of progress. The union signed a pledge of solidarity with the Writers Guild of America this month, indicating an intention to strike if a deal wasn’t closed by June 30.
There are whispers of a tentative deal, however. Last week, SAG President Fran Drescher released a video where she said the negotiations have been productive and promised a “seminal” deal.
Union negotiators have been singing a different tune, implying that the talks are stagnant.
While shoots have been limited since the writers’ strike began in May, certain shows have progressed. If the actors join the writers, film production will come to a halt.
The actors and writers are demanding similar things from the studios: changes to residuals and how much money they make after a show reaches a streaming platform.
Both unions also are pushing for increased pay to keep pace with inflation and further restrictions on artificial intelligence in the industry.
If the actors strike, it will be the first time since 1960 that both unions have walked out at the same time.
