Fran Drescher On Fighting To Protect Jobs As Technology Changes, Misogyny During SAG-AFTRA Strike

deadline.com:

SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher called out the misogyny that dogged her in strike negotiations and coverage, saying it was “disgusting.” She’s opined on that before but remarks today met a particularly receptive audience at the annual gala of New York Women In Film & Television where she was honored.

Drescher wasn’t able to attend in person as her father recently passed away. Her parents, who “instilled in me the importance of never crossing the picket line,” were both present in her speech, which was read by SAG-AFTRA executive VP Linda Powell at the NYWIFT Muse Awards. “It was a privilege, and certainly very challenging at times, to be a woman who was the focal point of the global labor movement,” Drescher said. “Of course, I couldn’t escape the misogyny … But I refused, I will always refuse, to conform to masculine expectations.” Drescher, now in her second term, led actors in an historic 118-day strike last year. “We did so because we had no other choice … wages aren’t keeping up with the cost of living.

And, without guardrails, we are all at the risk of having a dehumanized workforce. As AI technology becomes increasingly powerful, workers everywhere, and certainly within our industry, have reached a breaking point.” The union’s $1 billion deal with studios included the first AI protections for actors.

AI is also a big sticking point in SAG-AFTRA’s ongoing contract talks with the videogame industry. After more than a year of negotiating a new Interactive Media Agreement, SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland indicated earlier this month that the guild might soon be walking away from the table.