Negotiations between SAG-AFTRA and studios are suspended

LOS ANGELES — Negotiations between the studios and the union representing thousands of actors on strike in Hollywood have been suspended, a trade association for the studios said late Wednesday.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers said in a statement that the gap between it and the union known as SAG-AFTRA “is too great.”

“Conversations are no longer moving us in a productive direction,” the alliance, known as AMPTP, said. (The trade association represents NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News.)

SAG-AFTRA, which stands for the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, has been on strike since July 14.

It went on strike weeks after writers did so, on May 2. The Writers Guild of America strike ended almost five months later, on Sept. 27. Members of that union ratified its agreement this week.

The actors union and the AMPTP said in late September that they were resuming negotiations.

The trade association for studios singled out a viewership bonus that it said was sought by SAG-AFTRA and which the studios say “would create an untenable economic burden.” It said the measure could cost $800 million a year.

The actors union did not immediately respond to a request for comment late Wednesday.

SAG-AFTRA says it needs “a modern contract that addresses modern issues” and wants pay raises, protections surrounding use of artificial intelligence and greater participation in streaming revenue, which has eroded traditional residual payments.