The news that SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP have reached a tentative agreement to resolve the actors’ strike that shut down Hollywood was met with celebration by most in the industry. But Justine Bateman isn’t ready to celebrate just yet.
The “Family Ties” star and filmmaker, who spent much of the last year speaking out against the use of AI in the creative industries, said: X (formerly Twitter) Saturday to voice his objections to the deal. While guild leaders touted the deal’s “robust” AI protections, including rules that require studios to notify and compensate actors whenever their digitized image is used in a film or video, TV show, Bateman says the current deal doesn’t go far enough. .
“I’m going to take the transaction document itself (not the ‘summary’ that SAG plans to release) and explain the AI clearance violations that AMPTP will have on you,” Bateman wrote in a thread . “I am very disappointed that the SAG leadership and committee have not followed my advice on AI issues.”
She continued: “I said from the beginning that the use of generative AI was going to collapse the structure of this company. I want the cast and crew to have enough respect for themselves to turn the tables and topple the CEOs as they go. They will leave you with nothing left to lose.
Bateman continued to criticize the deal throughout the weekend. In an interview with MSNBC’s Ali Velshi on Saturday, she said union members should only ratify the deal “if they don’t want to work anymore.”
“The railway line is divided. A railroad track says, “Okay, we’re going to get into this kind of negotiation with the cannibals and we’re going to talk about how are you going to cut off my foot, and are you going to grill?” or boil it, and what kind of sauce are you going to put on it?'” she said. “I’m on a different path, I’m going to create human things for a human audience with teams and human actors, etc. And we’ll see what happens.
SAG-AFTRA members are expected to begin voting on ratification of the agreement on Tuesday, November 14.