Hollywood actors are striking in part because the big studios want to use AI to clone background actors and use their likenesses in perpetuity—for only $200.
The actors’ top labor union, the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), mentioned the alleged proposal in a Thursday press conference. The Hollywood studios called the idea "groundbreaking," but SAG-AFTRA’s chief negotiator, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, vehemently disagrees.
“They proposed that our background performers should be able to be scanned, get paid for one day's pay, and their companies should own that scan—their image, their likeness—and should be able to use it for the rest of eternity in any project they want, with no consent and no compensation,” he claims.
This has sparked backlash against Hollywood studio as the rise of AI is already stirring concerns that artificial intelligence will one day steal jobs from humans. Currently, typical background actors can get paid $179 to $226 per gig. But the proposal from the Hollywood studios could seriously diminish their earnings, allowing productions to pay background extras once to use their likeness for not just one TV show or movie, but many more.
SAG-AFTRA has called on Hollywood actors to strike partly to fight for contracts “that protects them from having their identity and talent exploited without consent and pay.” The union is also demanding higher wages, including increased royalty payments from streaming services.
“The entire business model has been changed by streaming, digital, AI,” said SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, best known for her starring role in The Nanny TV sitcom.
However, the trade association representing Hollywood studios claims it offered SAG-AFTRA a fair deal, including on using AI during productions.
“The AMPTP presented a deal that offered historic pay and residual increases, substantially higher caps on pension and health contributions, audition protections, shortened series option periods, and a groundbreaking AI proposal that protects actors’ digital likenesses for SAG-AFTRA members,” the association said in a statement.
“The Union has regrettably chosen a path that will lead to financial hardship for countless thousands of people who depend on the industry,’ the AMPTP added.