SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher Says “We Are Being Victimized By A Very Greedy Entity” As Actors Strike Officially Begins Tomorrow
13.07.2023 - 21:07
/ deadline.com
The actors strike is “probably” going to last a while, according to SAG-AFTRA leadership.
SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher and National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland laid out their reasons for striking in an emotional press conference.
Drescher, during an impassioned speech, said “We have a problem”.
“This is a very seminal hour for us. I went in thinking that we would be able to avert a strike. The gravity of this move is not lost on me,” she said. “It’s a very serious thing that impacts thousands, if not millions of people all across this country and around the world. Not only members of this union, but people who work in other industries that service the people that work in this industry.”
“We had no choice. We are the victims here. We are being victimized by a very greedy entity,” she added.
Deadline understands that Drescher and others will begin picketing tomorrow morning with a bus leaving SAG-AFTRA HQ around 8:30am, where they will go to Netflix, Paramount, Warner Bros. Discovery and finishing off at Disney.
The Nanny star said that she was “shocked” by the way that studio execs are treating actor. “I cannot believe it, quite frankly, how far apart we are on so many things. It is disgusting. Shame on them. They stand on the wrong side of history.”
She added that actors can’t keep being “marginalized, disrespected and dishonored” by a business model that has been changed by streaming. “If we don’t stand tall right now, we are all going to be in trouble. We are all going to be in jeopardy of being replaced by machines and big business,” she added.
Deadline revealed earlier this week that the AMPTP strategy for the writers, who are also on strike, was to keep it going until