Nov 27 2008
SAG Threatens Actors’ Strike
Right now things are still in the threat and conjecture stage, but thus far it doesn’t look like either side is willing to give in the latest disputes between the studios and the actors’ guild. To side with the actors, one must remember that they don’t all make $5 million per picture–though a large number of them do make more money for doing a few months work than most people make in a year…or two years. However much money they do or don’t make, though, they should be entitled to a piece of the pie that the studios rake in for that show or movie.
My gut reaction on the issue is that no matter who is right or wrong, a strike would be very bad right now. TV still hasn’t recovered from the writers’ strike last year, and I don’t think movies have fared all that much better. Production in Hollywood is in super slow-down mode, with everyone afraid to start shooting something that will then get tied up/axed due to an actor walkout. So now there’s less work for those actors, not to mention all of the crew people, caterers, hotels, restaurants…all the incidentals people don’t always consider.
An actor’s strike at this point could annihilate television as we know it. Doesn’t anyone remember the baseball strike? Fans were so angry it took years for baseball to get back on track. People stopped going to games, stopped watching them on TV or listening to scores on the radio. The same thing will happen here. If the TV shows that people have been waiting for since last year don’t show up in January or get shortened due to strikes, viewers are going to give up on those shows. New series that got curtailed last year have been experiencing a serious sophmore slump…what will happen if the loyal viewers that stuck with the show get denied again? They’re going to get mad. And they’re going to turn on their Wii and forget all about regular TV. Or they’ll go to a ball game…
According to the LA Times , SAG claims that the studios are “preaching” to them about the poor economy, and SAG apparently feels this is irrelevant. I have to say that it is unfair to have to give up what’s owed to you because of the state of the world, but sometimes that’s life. I’m not saying they need to roll over and never ask for another thing. But right now would be a very bad time to walk out on an already shaky industry. Sure, it might hurt the studios, but it’ll hurt everyone else a lot more. Including some of those actors.
Individual guilds, including the smaller American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, have negotiated their own deals with the studios. Many of their members are also SAG members, so it’s possible a lot of them will vote against a strike. And other actors, conscious of the state of the economy, may not support a strike either. Here’s hoping that some sort of agreement can be reached and that a devastating strike can be avoided.
