SAG Strike May Hit Video Game Industry Pending Members’ Vote
By Movieguide® Contributor
The actors’ strike might extend to video game companies as SAG-AFTRA’s national board seeks permission from union members to strike if negotiations with video game makers break down in a meeting later this month.
“Once again we are facing employer greed and disrespect. Once again artificial intelligence is putting our members in jeopardy of reducing their opportunity to work. And once again, SAG-AFTRA is standing up to tyranny on behalf of its members,” union president Fran Drescher said. “The disease of greed is spreading like wildfire ready to burn workers out of their livelihoods and humans out of their usefulness. We at SAG-AFTRA say NO! Not on our watch!”
The original contract between SAG and the major video game companies was extended last Fall as the two sides worked to find an amicable agreement. “Unfortunately, throughout the negotiations, the companies have failed to address” the actors’ critical needs.
Similar to the union’s negotiations with the AMPTP, SAG is seeking a significant pay raise and protections against AI for its actors who work in the video game industry. The union is currently asking for an 11% retroactive wage increase for video game actors, along with a 4% yearly increase to combat inflation.
The video game companies are offering “a nominal dollar increase but a real dollar pay cut,” a SAG-AFTRA negotiator told CNN, explaining that “our members will be making less in real dollars in 2025 than they did in 2020.”
In addition to a pay raise, the SAG-AFTRA negotiators are seeking protections against AI replacing its’ members’ jobs.
“The voice and performance capture artists who bring video game characters to life deserve a contract that reflects the value they bring to the multibillion-dollar gaming industry,” the union’s National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said. “Voice and performance capture AI are already among the most advanced uses of AI: the threat is here and it is real. Without contractual protections, the employers are asking performers to unknowingly participate in the extinction of their artistry and livelihoods.”
One issue that has presented itself in these negotiations is that many video game studios are owned by the same companies that own major television or movie studios.
Warner Bros. Discovery, for example, owns popular video game franchises, including “Mortal Kombat” and many Lego games, like “Lego Batman” or “Lego Marvel Superheroes.”
While SAG may receive approval from its members to strike, a strike would not be guaranteed. Rather, it would be a bargaining chip for the union as they return to the negotiation table with these major video game companies.
Movieguide® previously reported on the strikes:
As film festival season begins, many wonder how the WGA and SAG strikes will affect these events.
Amid the ongoing strikes, actors cannot promote their movies or attend premieres. While this might seem like it would kill any appearances at film festivals, interim agreements with movies produced by independent studios allow the glitz and glam to continue.
Rather than be completely void of stars, these festivals will have a smattering of talent depending on the studios behind the movies.
