The historic dual strikes that have stopped Hollywood in its tracks for almost half of this year are, seemingly, heading toward their end. The Writers Guild of America (WGA) has made a deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), and the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) is seemingly close to one as well. However, the dual strikes, along with many controversies and contradictory information, have caused confusion as to what the strikes are for, who benefits from them and why there is so much tension between all parties involved. This article seeks to dispel myths, quell confusion and explain the myriad of issues that have arisen.

The two parties striking are the WGA and SAG-AFTRA. The WGA represents the working writers of the film, television and radio industries, and SAG-AFTRA represents the working actors in the film, television, radio and video games industries (that distinction will become quite relevant). The two guilds are striking against the AMPTP, which represents film and television producers along with streaming companies.

The WGA and SAG-AFTRA are striking for similar but ultimately different reasons. The similarities involve protection against artificial intelligence and increased residuals from streaming viewership. The WGA is specifically fighting for the restricted use of artificial intelligence programs like ChatGPT to generate script material, protections for screenwriters who are hired to write more than one draft of a given project and a guaranteed minimum size for writers’ room on television shows. 

SAG-AFTRA wants to gain protections from the usage of artificial intelligence to scan actors’ faces and voices to create performances, compensations for self-taped auditions and third-party analysis on streaming viewership data.

For now, the strikes are heading toward an end, though it is unclear when the entertainment industry will be able to return to full swing. The WGA’s tentative agreement with the AMPTP – which has yet to be ratified by the union’s membership – allowed writers to return to work on Monday, Oct. 2, with late-night talk shows and television writers’ rooms immediately starting back up. With SAG-AFTRA still on strike, production is still on hold, though some projects have been able to receive an interim agreement to continue production.

SAG-AFTRA’s interim agreement is a strategy that allows non-AMPTP-affiliated productions to continue either production or promotion. SAG-AFTRA believes that interim agreements “are a strategic bargaining tool and an essential part of the union’s strategy to strengthen truly independent productions while weakening the resolve of the AMPTP,” according to the union’s news updates. Films like Michael Mann’s “Ferrari,” Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla” and the Nicholas Cage-led “Dream Scenario” have all been allowed to continue production and promotion under the agreement.

So why should I care?

This sentiment gets at the heart of most of the confusion with the strike: the conflation between the wealthiest members of the union and everyone else. Not every actor or writer is an A-lister who can command salaries of millions and can make or break a project’s development. Most actors and writers are people just trying to make a living, and the studios and streaming services have made such a proposition nearly impossible.

If the most famous Hollywood talent are barely making money from projects, just imagine what the average day worker in the industry has to contend with. This is why the strike was, and still is, necessary: to ensure a future for the industry.