Hollywood actors were poised to go on strike Thursday, joining writers in the first industry-wide shutdown in 63 years after last-ditch talks failed, with nearly all film and television production likely to grind to a halt.
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA), which represents 160,000 performers including A-list stars, said negotiations had ended without a deal on their demands over dwindling pay and the threat posed by artificial intelligence.
Its negotiators have unanimously recommended a strike to its national committee, who are expected to vote on Thursday morning, with a press conference scheduled at noon (1900 GMT).
The vote opens the door to a "double strike" with writers, who have already spent 11 weeks on the picket line -- which would trigger the first Hollywood shutdown since 1960.
Popular series set to return to television this year would face lengthy delays. And, if strikes continue, major films would be postponed too.
A strike would immediately prevent actors from promoting some of the year's biggest releases, at the peak of the movie industry's summer blockbuster season.
Emily Blunt, star of Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer," told reporters on the London premiere red carpet Thursday that "we will be leaving together as a cast in unity" if and when the strike is formally approved.
"We're gonna have to. We'll see what happens," she said, expressing hope for a "fair deal."
The much-hyped film's US premiere is due to take place in New York on Monday, but is among several likely to be scuppered by a strike in the short term.
- A-list stars -
SAG-AFTRA represents 160,000 members, including A-list stars such as Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence and Glenn Close. The vast majority have already voted to pre-approve industrial action if a deal was not struck.
Actors, like writers, are demanding better pay, and protections against the future use of AI in television and films.
"Compensation has been severely eroded by the rise of the streaming ecosystem. Furthermore, artificial intelligence poses an existential threat to creative professions," a SAG-AFTRA statement said after the talks fell through.
Executives have "refused to acknowledge that enormous shifts in the industry and economy have had a detrimental impact on those who perform labor for the studios," it continued.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents the studios, said it was "deeply disappointed that SAG-AFTRA has decided to walk away from negotiations."
"This is the Union's choice, not ours," said a statement.
Disney CEO Bob Iger on Thursday told CNBC the actors' and writers' expectations were "not realistic," calling the decision to strike "very disturbing."
But Phil Lord, the writer, director and producer behind hits such as "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" and "The Lego Movie," was among those in Hollywood pouring scorn on the studios' version of events.
"AMPTP has played hardball instead of helping to solve entirely solvable problems that endanger writers and actors on the lower ends of the pay scale," he tweeted.
The last time the actors' union went on strike, in 1980, it lasted more than three months.
- Picket lines -
While the writers' strike has already dramatically reduced the number of movies and shows in production, an actors' walkout would shutter almost everything.
Some reality TV, animation and talk shows could continue.
In New York on Thursday, actors joined writers on the picket lines ahead of the vote.
"I feel sad and it is painful and it's necessary," said actress and SAG-AFTRA member Jennifer Van Dyck.
"They are making so much money, and they say that we are not approaching this issue fairly.... no one wants to go on strike, but there's just no way we can proceed."
Actors and writers are demanding higher pay to counteract inflation, and guarantees for their future livelihoods.
In addition to salaries when they are actively working, actors earn payments called "residuals" every time a film or show they starred in is aired on network or cable -- helpful when performers are between projects.
But streamers like Netflix and Disney+ do not disclose viewing figures for their shows, and offer the same flat rate for everything on their platforms, regardless of its popularity.
Muddying the waters further is the issue of AI. Both actors and writers want guarantees to regulate its use, but studios have refused to budge.
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