Next on ‘Abbott Elementary’: An actor’s strike. What the SAG-AFTRA strike means for your favorite show

We may be seeing less Quinta Brunson on our TVs and more of her on the picket lines soon. The union representing her and thousands of other actors has announced its members will strike.

After failing to reach a contract with major studios, SAG-AFTRA — the Screen Actors Guild — announced Thursday that they will move forward with a long-anticipated work stoppage.

It marks the first time members have stopped work since 1980. And this time, they will be joining the Writers Guild of America, the union representing TV and film writers, marking a historic double strike that will bring Hollywood to a hard stop. It’ll be the first time the two unions strike together in 63 years.

“The eyes of labor are upon us,” SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher said Thursday in a news conference. “What happens here is important because what’s happening to us is happening across all fields of labor.”

Drescher said board members voted unanimously to proceed with the strike, marking the “largest strike authorization vote” in the union’s history.

She said the strike is warranted by studios’ refusal to negotiate in good faith to keep up with inflation and industry changes.

For the most part, the actors’ demands align with the Writers Guild’s, including safeguards regarding how artificial intelligence is used and a new framework for how performers are compensated when their work runs on streaming platforms.

» READ MORE: The Writers Guild strike explained

Over the last few months as the Writers Guild has been on strike, prominent actors doubling as SAG-AFTRA members have shown up in solidarity. Some, like Abbott Elementary’s Brunson, have said in the past that they’re a member of both groups.

Back in May when the writers’ strike started, Brunson showed up on the picket lines with WGA and hinted at the possibility of SAG-AFTRA also striking soon.

“If we keep staying strong, then we’re actually going to be able to make this end sooner and get the things that we’re fighting for — I think that’s a very important part of this,” she said. “It’s just important to remember that we’re fighting for something and we’re not going to leave here with nothing.”

Abbott Elementary is among the TV shows already impacted by the writers’ strike. Other TV shows and late-night TV — including Jimmy Kimmel Live and Saturday Night Live — have gone dark because of the WGA strike. The SAG strike only stands to lengthen the blackout.

Some TV shows and movies completed filming ahead of the strikes and have been able to air as planned. But as time passes, the strikes will impact the ability to have planning meetings and production timelines.

In Abbott’s case, a writers’ room meeting was scheduled the same week the WGA strike began. It was ultimately canceled, effectively pushing back Abbott’s schedule by months.

“If this strike goes on for a significant period of time, our show will not come out on time, and that could change the amount of episodes, which people I’m sure will be very upset about,” said Abbott Elementary writer Brittani Nichols.

SAG-AFTRA represents about 160,000 Hollywood actors, many of whom already signed a letter committing to strike if needed. Signees included Brunson, Meryl Streep, and Jennifer Lawrence.

Not all SAG-AFTRA members are impacted by the strike. The group’s national executive director, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, explained at the news conference that the walkout only impacts the union’s 65,000 actors from television and film productions who voted to authorize the strike. Performers in other contract areas are not directly impacted. In Philadelphia, a local chapter of SAG-AFTRA, for example, represents local talent including WHYY. The Inquirer reached out to both groups for comment, but did not immediately hear back from them.