SAG-AFTRA leadership continued negotiations with the major studios on Sunday, but despite growing optimism in the industry, no deal has been reached.
The union presented its latest proposal to the studios on Saturday. The two sides were said to be in “productive” talks over the weekend.
One source said there had been “tough conversations” on Sunday as they still had to resolve the thorny issues surrounding the regulation of artificial intelligence. Another said talks were moving in the right direction.
On Sunday night, SAG-AFTRA told its members that both sides would work independently on Monday and would contact each other at the end of the day to schedule further meetings.
“Join us and flood the picket lines in the morning,” the union said. “Make your voices heard.”
Four studio CEOs – Netflix’s Ted Sarandos, NBCUniversal’s Donna Langley, Warner Bros. Discovery’s David Zaslav and Disney’s Bob Iger – have warned that time is running out for the 2023-24 TV season. Several blockbusters have already been pushed back from their 2024 release dates as the strike continues to wreak havoc on the cinema calendar.
The CEOs took part in two days of talks last week. Since then, they have been monitoring the negotiations while Carol Lombardini, CEO of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, takes the lead for the studios.
With Halloween fast approaching, SAG-AFTRA continues to take heat for telling its members not to dress up as characters from studio movies and TV shows.
“Saturday Night Live dedicated an entire sketch to poking fun at the rule, with Sarah Sherman portraying SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher.
And Megan Fox posted a picture on Instagram of herself dressed as Gogo Yubari, the character from Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill: Volume 1”. She and Machine Gun Kelly dressed up for the Casamigos Halloween party in Beverly Hills on Friday night. Kelly appeared as Uma Thurman’s Bride character.
Fox appeared to deliberately thumb her nose at the SAG-AFTRA rule when she tagged the union in her Instagram post on Saturday.
SAG-AFTRA has been on strike since 14 July.
