Former 'General Hospital' star reveals what would end actors strike: 'That's it, end of story'
Writers, actors unions last went on strike together in 1960
Actor and producer Antonio Sabato Jr. explains why the writers and actors strikes will 'go on for a lot longer.'
With no end in sight for the actors and writers picketing outside Hollywood’s biggest studios, one industry leader warned the standstill will soon become an "even bigger" mess.
"They knew this was coming," actor, producer and former "General Hospital" star Antonio Sabato Jr. said on "Mornings with Maria" Thursday. "Put me in charge of SAG because these people over there don't know what they're doing. That can't make a deal. People are out of work."
"So why don't we get together with the heads of all these movies, right?" he continued. "The bigger actors in the world, we get them together in a room with executives and say: listen, if you guys don't do this, this, then that, we're not going to work anymore for you, period."
Sabato Jr. is just the latest Hollywood actor to chime in after the Screen Actors Guild union joined screenwriters in their months-long strike against streaming services, production companies and studios. It marks the first time in more than six decades that the two unions have been on strike simultaneously.
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Since May, writers, represented by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) have been on strike, asking for a guaranteed number of writers per room, increased pay, and regulated use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the writing process.
Striking SAG-AFTRA members picket with striking WGA (Writers Guild of America) workers outside Netflix offices on July 19, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Getty Images)
The strike has impacted the production of film and television series and is expected to cost the industry more than $3 billion in losses.
Actors and writers allegedly just "want a piece of what they deserve," the former soap star and model explained.
"They work so hard their whole life and they're using our likeness, they're using their name, they're using everything for their own benefits. And they don't care if they lose money," Sabato Jr. said. "There's no urgency and [there] should be urgency. There should be meetings every day. They should be talking about this every day to close the deal this week."
Former 'Law & Order' showrunner Warren Leight discusses the key issues for the writers and what's at stake on 'The Claman Countdown.'
"You use this actor, you use this likeness, you use this writer – pay him. That's it. End of story. Take care of them," he clarified. "But they're not doing that."
He further predicted that the strike and possibility of future tension between the groups will lead to more nonunion projects.
"The fact of the matter is these studios, at the end of the day, don't want to sit down and you have to make them sit down to benefit the people and the workers," Sabato Jr. noted.
"Look what's going on. Things are changing and I'm very happy for certain things, but other things have to be really changed this time. And if we do come to an agreement, whenever that happens, this time it has to be taken care of."
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Constellation Research CEO Ray Wang and FOX Business’ Kelly O’Grady weigh in on the Hollywood strikes and detail its impact on the economy and streaming production on ‘Cavuto: Coast to Coast.’
"Because last time, like I said, there was three months of wasting time of celebrities walking down with their sticks going, ‘I'm striking here for three months,’ and nothing was concluded and nothing was fixed. And there we go again here for another strike."
A-list Hollywood stars including Matt Damon, Margot Robbie, Jeremy Renner and Jamie Lee Curtis have publicly voiced support for the strike. Along with a ban on participating in filming, SAG union members also aren’t allowed to go to any premieres, do press or other promotions of projects.
Fox News’ Yael Halon and Brie Stimson contributed to this report.