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American actress and SAG AFTRA President Fran Drescher's antivax controversy has surfaced online. This comes as she was trolled online for her fiery speech blasting Hollywood studios after they failed to negotiate and avert a strike by the actors' union. On July 13, the 65-year-old star gave a lengthy speech, calling the studios "disgusting," adding that the actors are being “marginalized, disrespected and dishonored” by their new business model.
She said:
“We are the victims here. We are being victimized by a very greedy entity. I am shocked by the way the people that we have been in business with are treating us. I cannot believe it, quite frankly, how far apart we are on so many things. How they plead poverty that they’re losing money left and right while giving hundreds of millions of dollars to their CEOs. It is disgusting. Shame on them. They stand on the wrong side of history at this very moment.”
Speaking about their business model, which has changed dramatically since the adaption of artificial intelligence and streaming, Drescher said:
“What happens here is important because what’s happening to us is happening across all fields of labor, when employers make Wall Street and greed their priority and they forget about the essential contributors that make the machine run.”
Soon after Fran Drescher was praised online for launching a strike. It is scheduled to begin on July 14, netizens pointed out how she outright denied COVID-19 mandates on sets that ensured people's safety from the novel coronavirus.
What did Fran Drescher say about vaccine mandates?
In February 2023, Fran Drescher gave a controversial speech at the SAG Awards, where she outrightly urged Hollywood to use its position to put an end to forced vaccine mandates.
“As the nation declares an end to the COVID emergency this May, I hope we will see everyone return to work in equal opportunity. Our industry brings billions of production dollars to states across the nation. But if they want our business, let’s wield our financial influence to make governors act in the best interest of freedom, diversity, inclusion, and democracy. As my character Bobbi Flekman said in ‘This Is Spinal Tap’ — money talks and bulls–t walks!”
Hollywood's Covid protocols were scheduled to end on January 31, but were outstretched to April 1.
Drescher's latest speech on launching a strike was immediately countered by some of the netizens, who urged others not to get "too excited" since the actress used her position as the head of SAG AFTRA, a union that represents around 160,000 Hollywood performers, to end COVID-19 mandates.
This comes after July 13, when it was announced that SAG AFTRA members - a union that includes A-list stars to background actors - will join hands on a strike with the Writers Guild of America. This would be the first time since 1960 when both unions went on a strike together and shut down Hollywood.
The actors and the writers union are in a fight with The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) for equitable wages and working conditions. The AMPTP represents major streamers and studios like Apple, NBCUniversal, Paramount, Warner Bros Discovery, Amazon, Disney, Netflix, and Sony.
The AMPTP failed to reach an outcome even though the actors guild extended their negotiations for two weeks after their contracts expired on June 30.
