Hollywood Actors Go On Strike

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Good morning!

Happy Friday. Sit back, relax, and watch as this sea otter tries to steal a surfboard outside Santa Cruz, California. It is not the first time she has attempted to ‘boardjack.’

Her name is ‘Otter 841’ and authorities say they are in pursuit.

We will keep you updated on the adventures at sea. Have a great weekend-

Mosheh, Jill, & Courtney

🗞 HOLLYWOOD ON STRIKE

Hope you all like reruns and reality shows. Hollywood actors have voted to strike, joining writers who walked off the job in May– and setting off Hollywood’s first industry-wide shutdown in 63 years. And this work stoppage could last awhile.

WHO’S INVOLVED?
The leaders of the union, SAG-AFTRA, approved that strike on Thursday, hours after contract talks with a group of studios broke down.

This impacts more than 150,000 television and movie actors who will be on the picket line starting today. You may think of famous names when it comes to actors, but the vast majority are relatively unknown, and scramble for parts. Translation: They are not millionaires.

WHAT ARE THE ISSUES?

• Pay is at the center of the strike. Both actors and writers have demanded increased residual payments, a type of royalty, from streaming services.

  • Streaming series typically have fewer episodes than television series. Under the old model, if a show was a hit, it could get picked up overseas, which meant actors and writers could count on a long stream of of regular residual checks. That is no longer the case in the streaming world.

• And then there’s the issue of artificial intelligence. Both writers and actors want some type of rules around how AI will be used and guarantees in place that it won’t replace human jobs or impersonate them or their likenesses.

• There’s also frustration from actors about the growing tendency to make performers create video auditions at their own expense, which began during the pandemic.

Fran Drescher, who became a household name in the 1990s as The Nanny, is the president of SAG-AFTRA. She spoke after the vote to strike:

“We are the victims here. We are being victimized by a very greedy entity…how they plead poverty, that they’re losing money left and right when giving hundreds of million of dollars to their CEOs. It is disgusting. Shame on them.”

RESPONSE FROM STUDIOS
In a statement, the Alliance of Motion Picture and the Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of the studios, said that they offered “historic pay and residual increases,” and offered a “groundbreaking” A.I. proposal that protects actors’ digital likeness.

“Rather than continuing to negotiate, SAG-AFTRA has put us on a course that will deepen the financial hardship for thousands who depend on the industry for their livelihoods,” the studios said.

It comes as Disney, Warner Discover, Fox and the rest of the studios claim their business model is also collapsing: a rough ad market, cord-cutting, and declining streaming signups.

WHAT THIS MEANS
Union rules bar members from do any production work including auditions, readings, rehearsals or voiceovers along with actual shooting. Actors also can’t do any interviews or promotions around award shows, or make personal appearances to promote their work on podcasts or at premieres.

But this goes beyond actors and writers and freezes the entire industry. That includes hundreds of thousands of people from technical staff to makeup artists to caterers.

Zooming out: It could have a multi-billion dollar impact on Southern California, depending on how long the strike lasts. LA restaurateurs are already seeing declining revenues from the writers’ strike.

⏳ SPEED READ

🚨 NATION

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🌎AROUND THE WORLD

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📱BUSINESS & TECH

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📌 ChatGPT under investigation by Federal Trade Commission. FTC is examining whether the artificial-intelligence app harmed people by publishing false information (WSJ)

📌 World Health Organization says aspartame in diet beverages possibly causes cancer (CNN)

🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

📌 Olympic Champion Gabby Douglas announces her return to gymnastics after 'facing darkness and fears' (PEOPLE)

📌 America doesn't really care about cricket. Can Major League Cricket change that? (NPR)

📌 Beyonce's fans go WILD after her daughter Blue Ivy, 11, dons heels to perform with her on the Renaissance Tour: 'This will go down in history!'. (DAILY MAIL)

📌 Timothee Chalamet got offered Willy Wonka role with no audition needed (VARIETY)

🎉 CHEERS TO THE FREAKIN’ WEEKEND

• What We’re Watching: Jill: The Summer I Turned Pretty Season 2 on Prime, Club Random with Bill Maher; Mosheh: Hulu’s new docu-series, The Ashley Madison Affair.

• What We’re Reading: Jill: Wait, Are Hearing Aids Cool Now? Ask Millennials~WSJ Mosheh: Tortoise Estate Planning—One Chore of Having a Pet That Lives 100 Years~ WSJ

• What We’re Eating: Jill: Levain’s Bakery; Mosheh: Baby Shower goodies

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