The dual strikes of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA unions have highlighted the need for solidarity across the swaths of workers represented in them—and the necessity of their highest-profile members to support the rights needed by the lowest. And now, at least some of them are stepping up.
The donation drive was kicked off in earnest last week with the news of Black Adam star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s donation of an unspecified “seven-figure” amount to the Foundation, and he’s now been joined by a whole host of stars, including:
- George and Amal Clooney
- Luciana and Matt Damon
- Leonardo DiCaprio
- Hugh Jackman and Deborra-lee Furness
- Nicole Kidman
- Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck
- Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively
- Julia Roberts
- Arnold Schwarzenegger
- Meryl Streep
- Oprah Winfrey
“We stand ready to get back to the table and make a fair deal with the AMPTP,” George Clooney said in an accompanying statement. “Until then, I’m proud to be able to support the SAG-AFTRA Foundation and my fellow actors who may be struggling in this historic moment.”
Plenty has been made of the purported “hypocrisy” of the wealthy and famous members of both SAG-AFTRA and the WGA joining their fellow union members on picket lines since, in particular, the beginning of the former’s strike action three weeks ago. But donations like this and the presence of those stars in these actions is vital to highlight support not for them and their peers, but union members who do not have the same kind of financial power, and need the rights being fought for by their unions to guarantee access to stable incomes. Their involvement isn’t about the wealthy boosting their own, but using their positions to support the roughly 75-90% of SAG-AFTRA’s membership that cannot qualify for union-guaranteed healthcare plans, because they make less than $26,470 a year from acting.
As the studios involved with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers begin to weigh the prospects of a long haul for both strikes—the AMPTP is currently seeking a return to the negotiating table with the WGA this Friday, August 4, 94 days since the WGA’s strike action began—union members of all stripes will need to band together and support each other.
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