Why Soap Actors Will Keep Working If There Is A SAG-AFTRA Strike As Scripts Continue To Be Written

SAG-AFTRA, saying that it’s “preparing for a potential TV/theatrical/streaming strike,” is asking members to take a survey about if and how they’d like to volunteer in the event a walkout is called. “By taking this survey, you’re not obligating yourself to help, but it will help us make informed decisions about our members and resources if we ever need to ask for your assistance,” the guild said in an email sent to members tonight.

Strictly Come Dancing will be back on our screens later this year, with a whole new line-up of celebrities putting on their dancing shoes. Strictly bosses have reportedly signed up former Emmerdale actor Adam Thomas, 34, with the married star joking that he wants to 'experience the Strictly curse'. The tongue-in-cheek comment was in reference to the so-called 'curse' which has seen some coupled-up stars enter into a romantic relationship with their Strictly professional partner.

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UPDATED with joint statement: SAG-AFTRA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers agreed Friday to extend their current film and TV contract until July 12 to allow bargaining on a new deal to continue, both sides said this evening. The current contract had been set to expire tonight at midnight PT, after which it would have likely meant a second major Hollywood guild would be on strike against the studios.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer SAG-AFTRA negotiators are meeting again Friday with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, as the industry waits in nervous anticipation of a potential “double strike.” The contract expires at midnight, and the actors union could call a strike as soon as Saturday if no deal is reached. The actors would join the Writers Guild of America, which has been picketing outside the major studios since May 2. The two sides have been exchanging proposals over the last week, and SAG-AFTRA leaders have said publicly that the talks have been productive. But it’s still not clear whether enough progress has been made to get to a deal.

Welcome back, Insiders. Jesse Whittock with you this week to look back on the last seven days in international film and TV. Here we go. Also, sign up for the Insider newsletter here.

With the news that SAG/AMPTP negotiations could push into next week, international acting unions are for the most part taking a cautious approach to supporting a potential actors strike.

EXCLUSIVE: After it emerged that over 300 actors had written to SAG-AFTRA leadership that they are “prepared to strike” if the guild doesn’t “get all the way there” during talks with the studios, the number of actors signing the letter has more than tripled overnight.

"What happened to Jamie Foxx?" is a question that has been on the minds of many since the prolific actor was hospitalized for a medical problem in early April. While Foxx and his family have remained tight-lipped about what exactly happened or what he has been doing in the months since, his producing partner Datari Turner has offered an update on when fans can expect to see the Oscar-winning actor back in action. "He's doing amazing," he told People at the Hollywood premiere of his and Foxx's film "They Cloned Tyrone" on Tuesday.

Oscar winners Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence and over 400 other actors have addressed SAG-AFTRA leaders in an open letter — and are threatening to strike if a harder line is not drawn regarding contact deals.   

More than 300 actors including many big names have signed a letter to SAG-AFTRA leadership urging them to take a hard line in the negotiations for a new film and TV contract with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

More than 300 actors have signed a letter addressed to the SAG-AFTRA Leadership and Negotiating Committee.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer A group of more than 400 actors — including Oscar winners Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence and Rami Malek — are urging SAG-AFTRA leaders to take a harder line as contract talks reach a critical point. The members sent an internal letter Tuesday to the union’s negotiating committee and the leadership. They emphasized that “we are prepared to strike if it comes to that.” “And we are concerned by the idea that SAG-AFTRA members may be ready to make sacrifices that leadership is not,” they continued. The contract expires on Friday, and the leadership has the power to call a strike as soon as Saturday if no agreement is reached.

Manori Ravindran Executive Editor of International If you ask most people in the U.K. industry how business is going right now, they’ll likely tell you it’s been agonizingly “slow.” It’s meant to be boom time for production, but this summer, the U.S. writers strike combined with a cost of living crisis is brutally squeezing unscripted and scripted projects. This week, as the clock ticks away on negotiations between American actors union SAG-AFTRA and Hollywood’s collective bargaining agent, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the prevailing thought will be: is all of this about to get much worse? A number of British actors Variety has spoken to say they’ve yet to hear from local actors’ union Equity with any guidance about their situation. That’s likely because it’s being worked out in real time. Paul W. Fleming, general secretary for Equity, has been in Los Angeles for discussions with SAG-AFTRA, which is optimistic about its negotiations with the AMPTP. (He’s also visiting New York to meet with theater union Actors’ Equity.)

EXCLUSIVE: Maya Hawke (Asteroid City) and William H. Macy (Shameless) are set to lead the cast of the new original iHeartPodcast, Supreme: The Battle For Roe, a 9-episode series from creator and writer Aaron Tracy that delves into the true story of the Roe v. Wade case.

Kesha has been spotted numerous times in recent months with film producer Ricardo Maddalosso — even photographed sharing a passionate kiss — but don’t expect her to divulge much about the relationship.

EXCLUSIVE: Independent films that found it impossible to get bonded or financed this spring and summer with a potential SAG-AFTRA strike looming — as well as new projects that were looking to start after June 30 — now have a shot at moving ahead as the union proceeds with interim agreements.

Some of the “Squid Game” 2 cast has been revealed.

If you’re a fan of soap operas, you don’t have to worry about your favorite shows going off the air this summer amid the writers strike and the possible actors strike.

Billy Ray and Todd Garner are back for Week 6 of the Writers Guild standoff on Deadline’s Strike Talk podcast. Click below to listen.