Hollywood now faces an industry-wide shutdown for the foreseeable future as the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists joined the Writers Guild of America in a joint labor strike this week.
However, this isn’t the first time the historic walkout has occurred in La La Land.
In 1960, Ronald Reagan, then an actor, led the WGA and SAG unions against movie studios and producers for better pay. During the monumental strike, Reagan was the leader of the SAG. He later entered politics, becoming governor of California and eventually president of the United States.
Residuals were a major reason behind the 1960 strike at a time when Hollywood creatives were not being properly compensated for their films and television shows appearing on television beyond the initial release date or run.
The SAG went on strike alongside AFTRA in 1980 for the very same reason, though the two unions did not merge until 2012. The WGA was not involved in that walkout.
Higher residual payments remain a part of the Hollywood strikes to this day. However, those demands have been updated since 1960 to incorporate streaming services into the film and TV industry’s labor negotiations.
Along with better compensation, the WGA has been voicing its concerns about streaming’s impact on the industry and fears regarding artificial intelligence possibly putting screenwriters out of their jobs in the future. The writer's strike began in early May and has expanded to now include actors as of Thursday.
Hollywood is now at a complete standstill since SAG-AFTRA members cannot act nor promote their movies in any form as part of the guild's stipulations, according to Variety.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The actor's strike began just as the stars of Oppenheimer attended the film’s London premiere. Upon hearing the news, they left the red carpet before the movie was screened. The upcoming Barbie film will also be affected by the strike, which opens in theaters next weekend.
The only creative party not involved in the strike is the Directors Guild of America, which struck a new three-year contract last month.