Hollywood studios have reached a tentative contract agreement with the union representing directors, easing fears of a shutdown as the industry grapples with a writers’ strike and prepares for labor talks with film actors.
The Directors Guild of America said it reached an agreement with Hollywood studios earlier Sunday on some of the most contentious issues facing the industry, including streaming royalties and protecting jobs from advances in artificial intelligence.
“We’ve reached a truly historic agreement,” said Jon Avnet, chairman of the DGA negotiating committee.
The DGA, which has 19,000 members, said the agreement secured a “substantial increase” in royalties for the streaming service’s drama shows. For the biggest streamers, those gains represent a 76% increase in foreign residual income, which translates to $90,000 in gains for one-hour episodes over three years. These royalties will be determined based on the number of international subscribers to the streaming service.
The parties also agreed that “generative artificial intelligence cannot replace the duties performed by directors”, the DGA said. The union will vote on the contract proposal on Tuesday.
The move comes as the 11,500-member Writers Guild of America entered its second month of a strike over its failure to reach an agreement with the Union of Film and Television Producers, which represents Hollywood studios and streamers.
Like directors, some writers are most concerned about streaming royalties and the use of artificial intelligence. Actors union SAG-AFTRA is set to hold talks with film studios later this week, and artificial intelligence is also expected to be at the center of the discussions.
In recent weeks, studio executives have expressed hope that directors will be able to strike a deal, which will then be used as a template for agreements with writers and actors. The writers union has no scheduled talks with the studios.