Moore says some of her This Is Us streaming payments have been "very tiny, like 81-cent checks"
Mandy Moore says the advent of streaming has impacted all union members — even A-listers like herself.
The star joined the picket lines alongside hundreds of fellow actors and writers on Tuesday as part of the SAG-AFTRA and WGA Hollywood strike, which has effectively halted all production in the entertainment business.
According to Moore, a previously reliable source of income for actors has all but disappeared in the era of streaming.
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“The residual issue is a huge issue,” the actress told THR at the Disney picket line in Burbank. “We’re in incredibly fortunate positions as working actors having been on shows that found tremendous success in one way or another … but many actors in our position for years before us were able to live off of residuals or at least pay their bills.”
Moore said she’s received residuals for replays of This Is Us on streaming platforms ranging from one penny to “very tiny, like 81-cent checks.”
“I was talking with my business manager who said he’s received a residual for a penny and two pennies” she added.
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The actress later took to Instagram to further clarify that she knows she is in a “profoundly lucky and rarified position” compared to many of her fellow union members.
You can read her social media note (in full) below:
I want to bring a bit more clarity to a very nuanced issue. Striking isn’t fun. No one hoped it would come to this and I know everyone involved is hopeful for a resolution soon so folks can get back to work. The trickle-down effect felt across so many industries is already devastating.
There are plenty of issues that are gumming up the wheels (transparency with data, wage increases, residuals, ai, etc…) and I spoke about one that happened to be top of my mind because of a conversation I’d been having while picketing.
I fully acknowledge the profoundly lucky and rarified position I’m in as an actor at this moment, one that I don’t take for granted and one I also don’t assume to be in forever. Ours is a fickle industry and in my 20+ years of being a performer, my career has ebbed and flowed. I’ve had very lean years where I couldn’t get a job and those are precisely the moments when in years past, actors could rely on residuals from their past work to help them get by. The world and business have changed and I’m hoping we can find a meaningful solution moving forward.
I am one person- a tiny part of our guild- and while I am happy to use whatever platform my past jobs have given me to speak to issues effecting my fellow @sagaftra family, I know my experience is my own.
Here’s hoping we get a fair contract soon so we can get back to doing the jobs we all love and miss so much.
As Moore noted, residual payments were once steady forms of income for many actors, who were paid each time a film or television episode was replayed. It was particularly relevant due to the inconsistent nature of the acting business — with many performers experiencing years-long dry spells in-between gigs.
Actors, like Moore, now say that calculations for how much they should be paid when a show is streamed is not at all clear — which has resulted in vastly lower pay than previously.
SAG-AFTRA is asking for actors to be paid 2% of the revenue of shows on streaming platforms.
The union would utilize Content Valuation, a tool by Parrot Analytics, to measure revenue. AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) could not come to an agreement on this.
For more on the Hollywood strike see the link below:
SAG-AFTRA Strike: Pay Disparity, Artificial Intelligence and More Demands Explained
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