SAG-AFTRA Congratulates WGA on Tentative Deal with Studios

SAG-AFTRA, which has been walking with the writers since day one of the WGA strike, congratulated the guild Sunday after reaching a tentative agreement on a deal.

The union said tonight that it remains on strike and in a statement urged the AMPTP to get back to the table with the actors to “achieve the necessary terms” for its members.

“SAG-AFTRA congratulates the WGA on reaching a tentative agreement with the AMPTP after 146 days of incredible strength, resiliency and solidarity on the picket lines. While we look forward to reviewing the WGA and AMPTP’s tentative agreement, we remain committed to achieving the necessary terms for our members,” it noted.

“Since the day the WGA strike began, SAG-AFTRA members have stood alongside the writers on the picket lines. We remain on strike in our TV/Theatrical contract and continue to urge the studio and streamer CEOs and the AMPTP to return to the table and make the fair deal that our members deserve and demand.”

This comes as the actors have been on strike for 73 days themselves.

SAG-AFTRA walked out on July 14, two weeks after their contract expired on June 30. The union approved its strike authorization vote – by a 98% margin – on June 5.

Talks broke down on July 13, marking the first actors' strike against the film and TV industry since 1980. These talks had been extended as negotiations were still ongoing, although the more conspiratorial-minded suggested that the studios used this tactic to allow certain Hollywood blockbusters more time to be promoted.

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA’s national executive director and chief negotiator, has long said that the union remains eager to get back in the room with the AMPTP, which during this process has only been negotiating with one side at a time.

“We have been ready, willing and able to continue bargaining with them and we very much want the AMPTP to come back to the table,” he said last month.