SAG-AFTRA's national board has formally voted to oppose the proposed merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, adding its voice to growing opposition within Hollywood, according to reporting by www.thewrap.com. The resolution, passed over the weekend, aligns the actors' guild with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the attorneys general from a dozen states who have filed antitrust lawsuits to block the substantial leveraged buyout.
In a statement released Monday by SAG-AFTRA president Sean Astin and national executive director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union articulated its demands: the acquisition must not proceed "unless there are enforceable safeguards against reduced production by the studios with guarantees of increases in the percentage of productions made in the USA." This move follows Paramount Skydance's agreement to pause the merger, allowing the lawsuit filed by 12 state attorneys general to proceed to trial.
SAG-AFTRA has maintained continuous contact with Paramount Skydance, Warner Bros., California Attorney General Rob Bonta, and other relevant stakeholders throughout the acquisition process and related litigation. The union has also been in regular communication with the WGA, which filed its own lawsuit shortly after Bonta's, seeking to merge the two cases. The WGA has consistently opposed media mergers, citing concerns that they diminish employment opportunities for writers in film and television and reduce the likelihood of screenplays and pilots being greenlit for production.
While acknowledging that the claims in the WGA suit are specific to writers, SAG-AFTRA stated its support for their "forcefully condemning the Warner Bros. buyout." The timing of the actors' guild's action is designed to coincide with the "pause" in the attorneys general's case, ensuring all parties involved understand the union's assessment of the merger's "adverse consequences" for its members.
Beyond film and television employment, member concerns also extend to the potential impact on broadcast journalism. The union noted apprehension that Paramount Skydance, which oversaw a "widely condemned overhaul" of CBS News after CEO David Ellison reportedly hired "right-wing editor and commentator Bari Weiss" to lead the news division, might implement similar changes to CNN. These concerns are reportedly rooted in the belief that such changes could occur "at the behest of President Donald Trump," who is described as a close friend of Ellison and his father, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison.
SAG-AFTRA's statement affirmed that the issue affects members on multiple levels, given the "nature of our country’s politics, the erosion of confidence in our public systems," and the merger’s anticipated impact on "storytelling in all its aspects, not only performance but also broadcast journalism and public affairs." The union stated it would continue to monitor the situation vigilantly and reserves the right to comment further or take any necessary action to protect its members' interests.
