Members of SAG-AFTRA have been on strike since last month and, as things currently stand, there's no end in sight. As well as money, the use of AI is proving to be a major sticking point, particularly when it comes to what that means for actors moving forward.
We've seen some very clever uses of the technology; Obi-Wan Kenobi, for example, used it to create Darth Vader's voice (with James Earl Jones' permission and input) so the villain would sound as he once did. Secret Invasion, however, came under fire for its AI-generated opening credits.
On the picket lines, background actor Alexandria Rubalcaba spoke to NPR about working on WandaVision, revealing Marvel Studios scanned the faces of dozens of extras.
Now, she has no idea when or where her likeness will be used and, if it is, Rubalcaba isn't expecting to be paid.
"'Have your hands out. Have your hands in. Look this way. Look that way. Let us see your scared face. Let us see your surprised face,'" she says of the 15-minute process that resulted in a digital replica being created. "What if I don't want to be on 'MarioVision,' or 'SarahVision]?"
"I fear that AI is eventually going to weed out background actors. They won't have any use for us anymore."
Rubalcaba makes the current SAG-AFTRA union rate of $187 per day for being a background actor and says she never gave permission for her digital replica to be used. She's unaware of whether that will be adhered to but doesn't believe Marvel Studios and Disney will inform her either way.
During a recent press conference, SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher said, "[Studios] propose that our background performers should be able to be scanned, get paid for one day's pay, and their company should own that scan their image, their likeness and should be able to use it for the rest of eternity in any project they want with no consent and no compensation."
Something will have to give when it comes to the role AI plays in Hollywood, and it's those lengthy discussions which are likely going to see this strike continue well into 2024.