EXCLUSIVE
Jennifer Lawrence, A-List Actors Threaten to Strike in Letter to SAG
In a letter signed by 300+ actors, including Meryl Streep, members of the Screen Actors Guild say they’re ready to strike for the best deal possible
Earlier this month, members of the Screen Actors Guild voted to authorize a strike if their negotiating committee doesn’t reach an agreement on a new contract with major Hollywood studios by June 30. SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher released a video message this week with an update on the negotiations, telling members, “We are having an [sic] extremely productive negotiations that are laser focused on all of the crucial issues you told us are most important to you. We’re standing strong and we are going to achieve a seminal deal.”
But the message didn’t sit right with a lot of actors who are urging SAG not to settle for a deal that doesn’t represent all of their demands. More than 300 actors signed a letter addressed to the SAG-AFTRA Leadership and Negotiating Committee that’s circulating and was allegedly sent to leadership expressing their concern with the idea that “SAG-AFTRA members may be ready to make sacrifices that leadership is not.”
“We hope you’ve heard the message from us: This is an unprecedented inflection point in our industry, and what might be considered a good deal in any other years is simply not enough,” the letter, obtained by Rolling Stone, says. “We feel that our wages, our craft, our creative freedom, and the power of our union have all been undermined in the last decade. We need to reverse those trajectories.”
The message was signed by hundreds of members, including Hollywood stars like Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Rami Malek, Quinta Brunson, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ben Stiller, Neil Patrick Harris, Amy Schumer, and Amy Poehler.
Representatives for SAG-AFTRA didn’t immediately return Rolling Stone’s request for comment.
With just days left to make a deal before their contract with Hollywood studios, streamers, and production companies runs out, everyone who signed the letter says they’re “prepared to strike if it comes to that,” even though it’s not preferable because it “brings incredible hardships to so many, and no one wants it.” The members addressed a number of issues that are important to them when it comes to negotiations, including minimum pay, residuals that consider the growth of streaming, healthcare, pensions, and regulation around how self-tapes are used in the casting process.
The letter also calls out members’ fears and concerns around the use of artificial intelligence, saying, “We do not believe that SAG-AFTRA members can afford to make halfway gains in anticipation that more will be coming in three years, and we think it is absolutely vital that this negotiation protects not just our likenesses, but makes sure we are well compensated when any of our work is used to train AI.”
“We want you to know that we would rather go on strike than compromise on these fundamental points, and we believe that, if we settle for a less than transformative deal, the future of our union and our craft will be undermined, and SAG-AFTRA will enter the next negotiation with drastically reduced leverage,” the letter continues.
Back in May, the Writers Guild of America went on strike after they failed to negotiate a deal with Hollywood studios. WGA members have been vocal about their concerns about working conditions across the industry, including many outlined and echoed by SAG members. The issue of artificial intelligence in particular has become a highly discussed topic and major sticking point.
In their sign-off, actors ask their leadership to “push for change” and to ensure the protections they’re asking for. “If you are not able to get all the way there, we ask that you use the power given to you by us, the membership, and join the WGA on the picket lines,” they write. “For our union and its future, this is our moment. We hope that, on our behalf, you will meet that moment and not miss it.”
Here are the signatories listed in the letter obtained by Rolling Stone:
Chris Abbott
Amy Acker
Patrick J Adams
Lauren Adams
Paul Adelstein
Uzo Aduba
Alex Anfanger
Genevieve Angelson
Amy Aniobi
Hale Appleman
Amanda Arcuri
Fred Armisen
Kevin Bacon
Jodi Balfour
Talia Balsam
Elizabeth Banks
Matt Barats
Sara Bareilles
Ike Barinholtz
Britt Baron
Shakira Barrera
Max Barsness
Todd Bartels
Sarah Beth Bassak
Mikie Beatty
Alison Becker
Emma Bell
Troian Bellisario
Gregg Bello
Francis Benhamou
Todd Berger
Reed Birney
Gus Birney
Ephraim Birney
Bre Blair
Daniel Blake
Rowan Blanchard
Rachel Bloom
Josh Bonzie
Megan Boone
Joel Kim Booster
John Ross Bowie
Josh Bowman
Mac Brandt
Kurt Braunholer
Janicza Bravo
Kevin Brennan
Jordana Brewster
Alison Brie
Connie Britton
Jacqueline Brogan
Amanda Brooks
Sophina Brown
Quinta Brunson
Aynsley Bubbico
Rebecca Rose Bulnes
Joe Burch
Owen Burke
David Burtka
Matt Bush
River Butcher
Michelle Buteau
Megan Byrne
J Smith Cameron
Neve Campbell
James Carpinello
Keith Carradine
Sam Carson
Rafael Casal
Gerardo Celasco
Wyatt Cenac
Chris Chalk
Zoe Chao
Frances Chewning
Jamie Chung
Jessica St Clair
Adelaide Clemens
Glenn Close
Jeremy Cohenour
Lauren Cook
Olivia Cooke
Sarah Cooper
Nesta Cooper
Rob Corddry
Maddie Corman
Tom Costello
Julie Craig
Michael Cram
David Cross
Ashleigh Cummings
Erin Cummings
Tim Daly
Sam Daly
Alexandra Daniels
Brianne Davis
Ariana DeBose
Brooklyn Decker
Kathy Deitch
Majandra Delfino
David DeSantos
Torrey DeVitto
Rosemarie DeWitt
Chris Diamantopoulos
Daveed Diggs
Maria Dizzia
Kether Donohue
Chad Doreck
Fiona Dourif
Paul W. Downs
Minnie Driver
Drew Droege
West Duchovny
Anne Dudek
Merrin Dungey
Katie Duplass
Clea DuVall
Lisa Ebersole
Grace Edwards
Billy Eichner
Hannah Einbinder
Lilah Richcreek
Estrada Bridget
Everett Keith Ewell
JJ Feild
Beanie Feldstein
Bridget Flanery
Brad Fleischer
Caleb Foote
Amanda Foreman
Jimmy Fowlie
Dave Franco
Brendan Fraser
Jena Friedman
Nolan Gerard
Funk Betty Gabriel
Kathryn Gallagher
Peter Gallagher
Noah Galvin
Robert Gant
Mark Gantt
Beau Garrett
Spencer Garrett
Kimmy Gatewood
Drew Gehling
Brett Gelman
Brian Geraghty
Matt Gerald
Tavi Gevinson
Joe Gillette
Eliot Glazer
Ilana Glazer
Michael Godere
Joanna Going
Iddo Goldberg
Bryan Greenberg
Will Greenberg
Anne Gregory
Angela Gulner
Grace Gummer
Jenny Hagel
Josh Hamilton
Taylor Handley
Colin Hanks
Ryan Hansen
Neil Patrick Harris
Jeremy O. Harris
Paul Walter Hauser
Maya Hawke
Pat Healy
Tim Heidecker
Kayleigh Hendricks
John Arthur Hill
Mary Holland
Josh Hopkins
Laura House
Stephen Hu
Rob Huebel
Gary Cairns II
Annie Ilonzeh
Brittany Ishibashi
Abbi Jacobson
Peter Jacobson
Nikki M James
Matthew Jeffers
Sarah Jeffery
Richard Jenkins
Max Jenkins
Avan Jogia
Rebekka Johnson
Brandon Johnson
Lyn Durrel Jones
Amin Joseph
Paget Kagy
Kevin Kane
Jocko SimsKei
Connoe Kelly-Eiding
Riley Keough
Nancy Kim
Helen Kim
Emily Kimball
Joey King
Kristina Klebe
Rich Ceraulo Ko
Anna Konkle
Lindsey Kraft
Nick Kroll
Lauren Lapkus
Ooona Laurence
Jennifer Lawrence
Greta Lee
Andrew Leeds
John Leguizamo
Téa Leoni
Sam Lerner
Dan Levy
Angela Lewis
Laura Linney
Zoe Lister-Jones
Ron Livingston
Eva Longoria
Joe Lotruglio
Jessica Lowe
Natasha Lyonne
Anthony Ma
Nancy Ma
Cornelius Macarthy
Ashley Madekwe
Archie Madekwe
Erikka Makic
Rami Malek
Jena Malone
Jake Martin
Jeanine Mason
Marlee Matlin
Matthew McCarthy
Andy McPhee
Emma Meisel
Mei Melançon
Joshuah Melnick
Chris Messina
Debra Messing
Amber Midthunder
Patina Miller
Blaise Miller
Nina Millin
Jerry Minor
Matthew Scott Montgomery
Janet Montgomery
Lamorne Morris
Brad Morris
Jennifer Morrison
Javier Muñoz
Liam Neeson
Jeffrey R. Newman
Becki Newton
Sydelle Noël
Bob Odenkirk
Rosie O’Donnell
Taryn O’Neill
Leland Orser
Patton Oswalt
Elliot Page
Peter Paige
Adam Pally
Keke Palmer
Teresa Palmer
Robert Paterno
Nasim Pedrad
Gary Perez
Ryan Perez
Busy Phillips
Amy Poehler
Sarah Polley
Parker Posey
Keith Poulson
Daniel Powell
Alyssa Preston
Mark Proksch
Alex Quijano
Zachary Quinto
Courtney Rackley
Sendhil Ramamurthy
Michael Rapaport
June Diane Raphael
Drew Rausch
Emmy Raver-Lampman
Britt Rentschler
Sam Richardson
Tijuana Ricks
Genesis Rodriguez
Will Ropp
Ben Rosenfield
Emmy Rossum
Natasha Rothwell
Allen Theosky Rowe
Kristen Rozanski
Mark Ruffalo
Thomas Sadoski
Meredith Salenger
Jessica Sattelberger
Devon Sawa
Kristen Schaal
Sara Schaeffer
Tom Scharpling
Paul Scheer
Molly Schreiber
Amy Schumer
Kyra Sedgwick
Chlöe Sevigny
Frankie Shaw
Constance Shulman
Gabourey Sidibe
Robbie Silverman
Henry Simmons
Hannah Simone
Timothy Simons
Lexi Simonsen
Jenny Slate
John Slattery
Jimmy Smagula
Jahkara Smith
Jenny Soo
Marina Squerciati
Annie Starke
Riann Steele
Fisher Stevens
Daniel A Stevens
Ben Stiller
Meryl Streep
Brenda Strong
Mickey Sumner
Jeff Sumner
Jessica Szohr
JB Tadena
Amber Tamblyn
Robin Lord Taylor
Christian Telesmar
Nick Thune
Jackie Tohn
Marissa Tomei
Angela Trimbur
Jeanne Tripplehorn
Jonathan Tucker
Emily Vancamp
Mike Vogel
Lena Waithe
David Walton
Rosalie Ward
Lesley Ann Warren
Michaela Watkins
Haley Webb
Mark Webber
Steven Weber
Liza Weil
Chris Wendelken
Nick Westrate
Michelle Williams
Alex Winter
DeWanda Wise
Ellen Wong
Breeda Wool
Constance Wu
Noah Wyle
Travis York
Britney Young
Kelvin Yu
Nora Zehetner
Jenapher Zheng
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