SAG-AFTRA reaches tentative deal to end strike after 118 days

Actors are putting down their picket signs.

At long last, actors will be putting down their picket signs and picking up their scripts once again.

On Wednesday, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), the union that represents performers on film and television, announced that they have reached a tentative deal with the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers (AMPTP).

"We are thrilled and proud to tell you that today your TV/Theatrical Negotiating Committee voted unanimously to approve a tentative agreement with the AMPTP," SAG-AFTRA said in a statement provided to EW "As of 12:01am PT on Nov. 9, our strike is officially suspended and all picket locations are closed. We will be in touch in the coming days with information about celebration gatherings around the country."

The AMPTP called the agreement "a new paradigm" in a statement provided to EW. "It gives SAG-AFTRA the biggest contract-on-contract gains in the history of the union, including the largest increase in minimum wages in the last forty years; a brand new residual for streaming programs; extensive consent and compensation protections in the use of artificial intelligence; and sizable contract increases on items across the board. The AMPTP is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement and looks forward to the industry resuming the work of telling great stories."

"We did it!!!! The Billion+ $ Deal! 3X the last contract! New ground was broke everywhere!" SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher wrote on Instagram. "Ty sag aftra members for hanging in and holding out for this historic deal! Ty neg comm, strike captains, staff, Duncan & Ray, our lawyers, the IA team , family and friends. Our sister unions for their unrelenting support! And the amptp for hearing us and meeting this moment!

Actors have been on strike since July 14, after the guild's national board voted unanimously to launch the work stoppage. Following the expiration of their contract on June 30 and a 12-day extension period, the union and the AMPTP failed to reach an agreement, sending actors to the picket lines for 118 days. The last strike of this nature was in 1980, and it lasted for three months.

SAG-AFTRA joined the Writers' Guild of America on the picket lines, as the WGA had been on strike since May. It marked a historic moment in the Hollywood labor movement as the first concurrent strike between the guilds since 1960, a strike that essentially created the idea of residuals in the first place.

The WGA reached a tentative agreement on their contract on Sept. 24 after a 146 day strike, the second longest in WGA history. Because there was some overlap in the concerns of both guilds, the WGA deal was able to spur negotiations and a contract on the SAG side by setting several precedents.

The writers' union was quick to congratulate its sister guild following news of Wednesday's deal. "We're thrilled to see SAG-AFTRA members win a contract that creates new protections for performers and gives them a greater share of the immense value they create," the Writers Guild of America West posted on X/Twitter.

The two guilds shared many financial challenges that spurred the strike, both facing a host of radical changes as the industry has pivoted away from more traditional models of theatrical distribution and network and cable television in favor of streaming. The issues at hand included the use of AI in generating and perpetuating actors' likenesses, as well as residuals and data transparency for streaming projects. Other points of conflict are also salaries, particularly for guest stars, costars, and background actors, as rising inflation and the cost of living increasingly prevent many working actors from earning a living wage.

The power of the combined strikes essentially ground Hollywood to a halt. Already, most production was paused with the WGA strike as the lack of both new scripts and the inability of writers to be present on set forced postponement of project. Any projects still in production were effectively halted by the additional SAG-AFTRA strike, excepting productions that did not fall under the same contract being negotiated, such as reality shows, game shows, and talk shows.

Actors have also been largely absent from film and television promotion, per the rules of the strike. Aside from a limited amount of projects that negotiated terms for interim agreements outside the bounds of the AMPTP contracts, stars have not been permitted to do interviews, walk red carpets, or attend premieres, festivals, and conventions on behalf of struck work since the strike began. This led to upheaval across the industry, including a San Diego Comic-Con with low star power, a similar scene at buzzy fall festivals, including Telluride and the Toronto International Film Festival, and the postponement of the Emmy Awards until January.

Many major films and television shows were delayed in the wake of the strikes, including the final season of Stranger Things and virtually the entire MCU slate, including Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts, Blade, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, and Avengers: Secret World. Disney also delayed its live-action Moana movie, an untitled Star Wars film, and all of the Avatar sequels on future release calendars.

Studios will likely look to resume production as quickly as possible in the wake of the new contract to make up for months of lost time.

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Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.