Hollywood in Crisis; Actors Join the Strike

Hollywood actors joined striking writers on Thursday evening after negotiations between the American Actors Guild, known as 'SAG-AFTRA', and major film studios failed. The previous agreement between this guild and Hollywood studios expired on Wednesday night, and on Thursday afternoon, the union announced the strike during a press conference in Los Angeles. A letter circulated among Hollywood actors, signed by 1,000 of the most prominent actors, indicated widespread support for the strike. The biggest concern for American actors and writers currently is the use of artificial intelligence in film and television productions, as they fear for their job security. Additionally, the actors' guild believes that the emergence of various streaming platforms such as Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Apple Plus has not translated into increased revenue from television broadcasts of their works. This is the first time since 1960 that actors have gone on a nationwide strike; the last occurrence was during Ronald Reagan's presidency of the actors' guild before he became President of the United States. The American Actors Guild represents 160,000 members, and Fran Drescher, a former television star and the current president of the guild, described the studios' responses to the actors' requests as insulting. It is noteworthy that negotiations have taken place behind closed doors, and no details have leaked out. With the actors joining this strike, the production of many film and television projects will effectively come to a halt.