Billionaire media mogul Barry Diller warned that the Hollywood writer and actor strikes could lead to “devastating effects” and an “absolute collapse” if it is’ resolved.
Both SAG-AFTRA (the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) and WGA (the Writers Guild of America) took to the streets of Los Angeles in a bid for fairer pay,
The full day of a walkout that has become Hollywood’s biggest labor fight in 63 years.
The guilds have issues with studios and streaming services, mostly with contracts keeping up with inflation and residual payments, which compensate creators and actors for the use of their material after airing.
The unions want to put up guardrails against using artificial intelligence, which mimics their work on film and television.
As The Epoch Times reported:
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, representing employers including Disney, Netflix, Amazon, and others, has lamented the walkout, saying it’ll hurt thousands of workers in industries supporting film and television production.
Mr. Diller, a former Paramount Pictures CEO, said on July 16 that the situation could compound if not resolved quickly.
“These conditions will potentially produce an absolute collapse of an entire industry,” he told CBS News.
“I would call for a September 1 deadline. There’s a strike deadline. I think there should be a settlement deadline because unless it happens by September 1 … The truth is, this is a huge business both domestically and for world export.
“These conditions will potentially produce an absolute collapse of an entire industry.”
But a settlement in the near future appears unlikely, he said, adding that there is “no trust between the parties,” and there are “existential issues,” including the rise of AI, which is “overhyped to death,” Diller said.
“Writers will get assisted, not replaced,” he said.
“Most of these actual performing crafts, I don’t think they are in danger of artificial intelligence.”
Mr. Diller also said that some writers’ and actors’ claims that top media executives are overpaid are also overblown.
“You have the actors union, saying, ‘How dare these 10 people who run these companies earn all this money and won’t pay us?'” he added.
“If you look at it on the other side, the top 10 actors get paid more than the top 10 executives. I’m not saying either is right. Actually, everybody’s probably overpaid at the top end,” he told the outlet.
The Hollywood strike has already brought the television production to a grinding halt, including shows like Stranger Things” on Netflix, “Hacks” on Max, and “Family Guy” on Fox.
The additional Hollywood strikes also led to the shutdown of many major films, including “Deadpool 3,” “Gladiator 2,” and the eighth installment of Tom Cruise’s “Mission Impossible” series.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the industry “is at a historic inflection point.”
“This affects all of us and is essential to our overall economy,” Ms. Bass said in a statement.
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