Studios reportedly plan to stop negotiating with SAG-AFTRA until next year

Despite the resolution of the WGA strike, which marked the end of one of Hollywood's longest double strikes, the SAG-AFTRA strike continues to rage on with little hope of resolution as per recent reports. However, a new report from The Wrap seems to suggest something worse- the possibility of no negotiations till January 2024.

According to The Wrap, the studios believe that if a deal is not reached within the next week with the Screen Actors Guild, they will not continue negotiations until January 2024. This is because the fall television season and the Christmas film promotion time would be lost, making a negotiation at this time futile. Hence, studios allegedly believe early November to be a dead zone, where it will not be beneficial for them to resume negotiations.

This also aptly puts pressure on the SAG-AFTRA to bend a little and go forward with the proposals of the big studios. If the deal is not reached this week, it will mean that actors will have to face the risk of a vulnerable situation that will see no resolution for quite some time.

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What is the current situation of the SAG-AFTRA negotiations?

The SAG-AFTRA negotiations have been in a complicated place for quite some time. After a break, the negotiations resumed this week on Tuesday after the CEOs walked away two weeks ago over a new demand that the Actors' Guild placed on the table.

The latest demand from the Actors' Guild included a $1-per-subscription fee from streaming divisions on top of raises and other benefits, which was not initially taken up by the studios. On Wednesday, The guild decided to skip further bargaining following the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP)'s counteroffer. As per sources, which remain undisclosed, both sides are currently taking a day to consider the offers.

Tuesday’s meeting was the first since October 11, 2023, which also saw the AMPTP, which represents the studios in the process, abruptly walk away from the scene, causing quite an uproar. As of then, the primary disagreement was SAG-AFTRA’s proposed streaming revenue-sharing plan, which the studios deemed unfair.

So, as of now, the situation remains unresolved on both ends.

The strike began after the WGA strike. It has contributed to the biggest interruption to the American film and television industries since the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, alongside the Writers' Strike. As of now, the strike is going on for 104 days, making it the longest strike in the history of SAG-AFTRA.

If the negotiations are not completed in the coming week, it could shatter several other records as well.