After more than 100 days, a tentative deal has been reached between SAG-AFTRA members and Hollywood studios.
The longest actors’ strike in Hollywood history ended on Nov. 9 after the union’s negotiating committee approved a deal on a unanimous vote, Variety reports. The tentative agreement goes to the SAG-AFTRA national board for approval on Friday.
The 118-day strike officially ended at 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 9. Finishing touches were being made in recent days that see actors receive a minimum increase of 7% and protections against artificial intelligence, among other things.
The new contract, worth over $1 billion, will see actors receive a “streaming participation bonus” and increases in pension and health contributions.
The use of AI was a big concern for actors as the technology continues to advance and gain steam in the industry. But now “unprecedented provisions for consent and compensation will protect members from the threat of AI,” SAG-AFTRA says.“We have arrived at a contract that will enable SAG-AFTRA members from every category to build sustainable careers,” the union said in the email. “Many thousands of performers now and into the future will benefit from this work.”
It’s great news for SAG-AFTRA members who have been sidelined for nearly four months, unable to work and receive pay for work. While the new deal has not been finalized and doesn’t meet all requests made by actors, union reps say they will be back to seek more in their next negotiation in 2026.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers says the new deal “represents a new paradigm” between the two parties.
“The AMPTP is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement and looks forward to the industry resuming the work of telling great stories,” the employer group said.
SAG-AFTRA now has “the biggest contract-on-contract gains in the history of the union, including the largest increase in minimum wages in the last 40 years; a brand new residual for streaming programs; extensive consent and compensation protections in the use of artificial intelligence; and sizable contract increases on items across the board,” AMPTP states.