The strikes in Hollywood are not letting up; the writers’ strike is now on its 113th day and the actors’ strike has reached its 40th. To keep going and picketing for so long must be grueling in the current summer heat in California, but both guilds are standing resolute and firm, with many well-known voices firing up the crowds.
There seems to be no end in sight for the current strikes happing across the entertainment industry in The United States. On Tuesday, a large crowd numbering in the thousands turned up to a rally supporting the strikes outside of Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. In order to rally the troops and assure them that what they fight for is right, notable guest speakers were invited to speak on the merits of the strike. Kerry Washington and Michael Sheen were amongst the famous actors and union figureheads who lent their voices to the cause, encouraging the people to keep striking for fair wages, protection against AI, and residuals from streaming services.
These two actors were apt choices for the role, having both appeared in political dramas which saw them draw on their strength and passion, with Washington having starred as Olivia Pope in Scandal, and Sheen as President Jed Bartlet from The West Wing. The latter channeled his presidential character as he addressed the crowds, encouraging union members “to stand together for the long haul and to stick to it like a stamp,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. He went on to state, “Let us continue to dream things that never were and say, ‘Why not?’” as the crowds cheered their assent.
Washington also got the crowds going as she opened up about her own childhood dreams, of working as an actor in an industry that paid its workers fairly. She pointed out how so many in the industry suffer from appallingly low wages, whilst studio execs get rich off of the backs of others who work ridiculously long hours, oftentimes non-stop, in sometimes dehumanizing conditions, only to receive breadcrumbs from shows that are smash hits for studios and pull in millions of dollars:
“I learned … I could just pursue a career doing what I love to do and I could raise a family and live a life doing that — being paid a fair wage,” she said. “We have come to a point in our history where that is no longer possible. We’ve come to a point in our history where just being a working actor — coming to work every day, devoting oneself to this craft, dedicating oneself for the entertainment and the joy of others — means I can’t make a fair living. It’s not OK. It’s not OK for other people to benefit from our hard work and sweat. It’s not OK for other people to benefit while we work 16-hour days. It’s not OK for other people to benefit when we put our vulnerability and our hearts on the line. It’s not OK for other people to benefit while we do the hard work. That’s not OK.”
She went on to tell the people that whilst in the movies “There is this tradition of storytelling that says there is this one hero that comes in and saves the day,” going on to show that this is not the case in real life adding, “But when you stand here today and you look around, no, that the real way we create change is by standing together. It is not about one person, one for one; it’s about one for all.”
They weren’t the only famous faces there that day; with the likes of Ron Perlman also delivering speeches, Lord of the Rings and The Goonies actor Sean Astin, as well as Carrie Fisher’s half-sister, and SAG-AFTRA secretary-treasurer, Joely Fisher who invoked her sister’s memory and the spirit of her most famous character Princess Leia:
“The eyes of the world are watching, but more importantly, the American worker is watching. And like us, they are saying ‘Enough.’ Enough to low wages that don’t keep up with inflation. Enough to unsafe work conditions. Enough to dehumanizing technology. Enough to de-valuing our work. Make no mistake, we are at a crossroads. The very existence of our jobs is at stake, be the great resistance against the evil empire.”
She concluded the proceeding at the end of the rally by leading a rousing performance of “Do You Hear The People Sing” from Les Misérables.
