Netflix posted a job listing for an AI product manager with a potential $900,000 salary amidst the ongoing Hollywood actors and writers strike.
The entertainment industry has been in a state of paralysis since July 14th, when the Screen Actors Guild of America – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) and the Writers Guild of America (WGA) joined forces.
Hollywood’s unions are battling for increased base pay, enhanced streaming residuals, and guarantees surrounding the impact of AI on their professions.
Netflix’s vacancy is for a “Product Manager – Machine Learning Platform,” showing that it’s business as usual for Netflix and other members of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
Rob Delaney, a writer, actor, and comedian, told The Intercept, “So $900k/yr per soldier in their godless AI army when that amount of earnings could qualify thirty-five actors and their families for SAG-AFTRA health insurance is just ghoulish.”
Delaney further remarked on the industry’s wealth distribution: “Having been poor and rich in this business, I can assure you there’s enough money to go around; it’s just about priorities.”
Large rally takes place in Times Square
The fame and prestige attached to the Hollywood actors’ strike have garnered international attention.
On Tuesday, SAG-AFTRA held their largest rally yet in Times Square, joined by Bryan Cranston, Jessica Chastain, Brendan Fraser, Wendell Pierce, Ellen Burstyn, Steve Buscemi, Jane Curtin, Christian Slater, Michael Shannon, and Chloe Grace Moretz, among many others.
Participants took turns making impassioned speeches on a stage at the heart of Times Square.
Bryan Cranston of “Breaking Bad” said at the rally, “We will not be having our jobs taken away and given to robots. We will not allow you to take away our right to work and earn a decent living… We are union through and through, all the way to the end!”
Bryan Cranston delivers a speech at the NYC SAG-AFTRA strike rally.
“We will not be having our jobs taken away and given to robots. We will not have you take away our right to work and earn a decent living. We will not allow you to take our dignity.” pic.twitter.com/aReUxk7SVo
— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) July 25, 2023
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson donates 7-figure sum to SAG-AFTRA
Dwayne Johnson reportedly made a generous “seven-figure” contribution in support of SAG-AFTRA.
Following the declaration of the strike, the union president Courtney B Vance and executive director Cyd Wilson reached out to Hollywood’s top earners to request financial support.
Johnson’s contribution could potentially support between 7,000 to 10,000 union members via the union’s Emergency Financial Assistance Program.
