SAG-AFTRA is striking against video game publishers to protect actors from being exploited with the help of artificial intelligence.
No agreement has been reached after a year and a half of negotiations. The union wants to ensure that artificial intelligence is not used as a tactic to treat actors in major games unfairly. “The Convenience Bargaining Group with which SAG-AFTRA is negotiating includes Activision Productions Inc., Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices Inc., Electronic Arts Productions Inc., Formosa Interactive LLC, Insomniac Games Inc., Llama Productions LLC, Take 2 Productions Inc., Voice Works Productions Inc. and WB Games Inc.,” SAG-AFTRA said in a statement.
“SAG-AFTRA members who work in video games plan to strike against all video game companies that have signed the Interactive Media Compact on Friday, July 26th, beginning at 12:01 a.m.,” they said on their website. [called by Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union’s National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator].”
“The video game industry generates billions of dollars in profits annually, and at the heart of that success are the creative people who design and create the games, including the SAG-AFTRA members who bring memorable and beloved game characters to life,” Duncan said. “They deserve and demand the same fundamental protections as performers in film, television, streaming and music: fair compensation and the right to informed consent for AI use of their face, voice and body.”
On Instagram post Followers of the community weighed in on the video, which was shared on Thursday, July 25. “The idea of AI replacing actors and voice actors is getting out of hand… AI cannot replicate human fragility in a human way,” one user commented.
This comes on the heels of the union’s 118-day strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which ended in November 2023 when a resolution was found: “We have reached a deal that will enable SAG-AFTRA members in all disciplines to build sustainable careers…Thousands of actors will benefit from this effort, now and into the future.”