Hollywood Stunt Artists Voice Concerns Over Impending AI Agreement

By next Tuesday evening in Los Angeles, it's expected that a vast majority of the 160,000 Hollywood actors' guild members will cast their votes in favor of a new agreement with studios. The pact is seen as a victory for actors, but not all are content with the terms. Stunt workers, a smaller contingent within the guild, are signaling a strong inclination to vote against the deal, feeling that it has left them vulnerable.

Stunt Professionals Worry Over AI Provisions

Jordan Le Goueff, a stuntman with experience in major Hollywood movies, reports widespread unease among his peers about the deal's approach to artificial intelligence. They fear that it inadequately safeguards their profession, which could be threatened by the rising use of digital stunt doubles.

Minority Voices in a Major Agreement

Stunt artists form a sliver of the overall guild and are concerned their voices may be drowned out by the larger actor community. Background extras—which far outnumber stunt performers—may focus on the immediate pay increase promised by the agreement, possibly overlooking its long-term implications, especially in regards to AI regulations.

Tentative Agreement Lacks Specificity for Stunt Work

The current agreement is criticized for its vague language—specifically the term 'reasonably specific'—and for not providing clear limits to the use of actors' digital likenesses. Stunt performers are particularly absent from the documentation that's supposed to guide guild members through the complex agreement.

Stunt Performers Face an 'Existential Crisis'

Both Jordan Le Goueff and Jacqueline Rosenthal, another stunt professional, feel that the new provisions, which allow for digital replicas in hazardous scenarios, directly undercut the essence of stunt work. Actors, meanwhile, might support the agreement due to the compensation for their digital likenesses, disregarding the potential downsizing of the stunt industry.

Concerns Over the Future of Stunt Work

Despite assurances that AI is currently too expensive to threaten stunt jobs, Rosenthal notes that technology cost decreases over time and could lead to increased use of digital doubles. The potential lack of regulatory language to protect stunt work in the agreement sparks fear that actors will be encouraged to benefit at the expense of their stunt counterparts.

In Hollywood, stunt experts joke that if anyone is to be thrown under a bus, they would prefer to literally perform the stunt themselves, rather than become collateral damage of a financial decision.

Hollywood, stunt, AI