SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher is saying that George Clooney’s proposal to help end the actors strike will not impact the contract they’re currently striking over. Earlier this week, Clooney and a group of other A-list actors met with SAG-AFTRA’s leadership with a proposal to remove the cap on membership dues for high-earning members to help bridge the gap between what SAG-AFTRA is seeking in 2023 negotiations and what the studios and streamers are willing to give, meaning that major stars like Clooney would pay more in dues than is currently required (the cap is currently at $1 million in earnings). The proposal also seeks to get lower-income members paid in residuals before higher-income members.
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00:00 SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher is saying that George Clooney's proposal to help end
00:04 the actors' strike will sadly not work as it will not impact the contract they're currently
00:08 striking over.
00:10 Earlier this week, Clooney and a group of other A-list actors met with SAG-AFTRA's leadership
00:14 with a proposal to remove the cap on membership dues for high-earning members to help bridge
00:20 the gap between what SAG-AFTRA is seeking in 2023 negotiations and what the studios
00:25 and streamers are willing to give.
00:27 Meaning that major stars like Clooney would pay more in dues than is currently required.
00:32 The cap is currently at $1 million in earnings.
00:34 The proposal also seeks to get lower-income members paid in residuals before higher-income
00:39 members.
00:40 Drescher addressed his plan in an Instagram post.
00:43 "I also want to thank George Clooney for organizing the suggestion that we raise the, take the
00:55 caps off of the dues so that the highest paid members can contribute more."
01:02 Drescher explained that the proposal wouldn't work legally due to the basis of the union's
01:06 contract.
01:07 "We are a federally regulated labor union and the only contributions that can go into
01:11 our pension and health funds must be from the employer, so what we are fighting for
01:15 in terms of benefits has to remain in this contract."
01:19 The talks between SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP are currently stalled over issues such as
01:23 AI and the union's streaming viewership proposal, which attempts to charge streaming services
01:28 57 cents per subscriber to create a pool of funds that could be distributed to members
01:33 whose work appears on these services.
01:36 For much more on this story, head to THR.com.
01:39 And for the latest entertainment news and updates, keep watching The Hollywood Reporter
01:43 News.
01:43 (whooshing)
01:46 (upbeat music)