The Hollywood actors’ strike has just got the support of one of its most famous A-listers: Tom Cruise.
The “Top Gun: Maverick” star backed SAG-AFTRA during a surprise appearance at a negotiating session between the actors’ union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) via Zoom, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The 61-year-old reportedly rallied against the takeover of artificial intelligence in a statement now echoed by thousands of actors and entertainers in Hollywood, who are striking with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) for the first time in over six decades.
Cruise hopped on the call in a desperate bid to get the AMPTP to re-evaluate its stance on AI in the TV and film streaming era.
The actor’s latest “Mission: Impossible” movie has ground to a halt as a result of the strike action, as have dozens of other high-profile projects, including the “Avatar” sequel, “Gladiator 2” and “Deadpool 3.”
During the Zoom call, Cruise also addressed the guild’s stance on stunt actors, according to the outlet.
The actor asked the AMPTP to allow performers to continue on with their press tours following the strike, due to the “fragile state of movie theaters” following the pandemic.
He said promoting films is just as “important” to the actors as it is to the studio, the outlet adds.
The union protecting Hollywood’s biggest A-listers on Thursday joined forces with screenwriters on the picket line after voting to shut down production across the entertainment industry, which may result in a drought of shows and movies in the near future.
The SAG-AFTRA unanimously voted to stop working after their contract expired and talks broke off with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents streaming giants like Disney, Netflix, Amazon and others.
The strike marks the first time the 160,000-member-strong SAG-AFTRA has walked off film and TV jobs since 1980.
The actor-screenwriter strike is the first joint walkout in more than six decades.
Both SAG-AFTRA and the WGA are demanding a rise in pay and residuals in the streaming era.
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