Members of SAG-AFTRA have until 5 p.m. Tuesday to vote on the tentative deal reached with the studios and streamers last month.
Entertainment attorney Jonathan Handel told KNX News' Pete Demetriou he thinks the 'yes' vote will be between 75% to 85%.
“There's been organized opposition to this deal with concerns around artificial intelligence,” he said. “Some of those concerns feel potentially justified. Some of them may be a little bit buying into the hype a little bit.”
Some members of SAG-AFTRA have criticized the A.I. provisions. One of those members includes actor Matthew Modine, who is also a member of the National Board. He voted 'no' on the tentative deal.
“If ratified, SAG-AFTRA members who consent will be digitally exploited in ways not clearly defined and are currently beyond our individual abilities to control,” the actor said in a statement to Variety.
SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher was quoted by Variety as saying in a Nov. 13 meeting, "Sadly there have been some naysayers who have exploited this momentum of ours."
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator, said in a press release that the tentative deal includes "detailed AI guardrails that didn’t exist before and do protect [members] as we meet the challenge of this new technology..."
On Nov. 24, SAG-AFTRA released the full 129-page Memorandum of Agreement.
In addition to the A.I. protections, other key components of the tentative agreement include s more than $1 billion in new wages -- including a 7$ pay raise-- and funding for benefits and establishment of a streaming participation bonus that will compensate performers in addition to traditional residuals.
The tentative deal was reached on Nov. 8 following a historic 118-day strike by the actors’ union. The union’s national board of directors approved the agreement on Nov. 10 with 86% of the votes a 'yes.'
If the agreement is ratified, it will be in effect through June 2026.
City News Service contributed to this report.
Follow KNX News 97.1 FM
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok