SAG-AFTRA Deal Sets Rules for Synthetic Actors

SAG-AFTRA has presented a tentative agreement to members that establishes new protections against artificial intelligence, specifically addressing the use of digital replicas and synthetic performers in Hollywood productions [1]. The contract, which is currently being voted on by members, replaces a proposed financial penalty on synthetic actors with a system requiring producers to prove the technology provides "significant additional value" before use [1][2].

Key takeaways

• The new contract requires informed consent and fair compensation for digital replicas of actual performers [2].
• Studios must bargain with the union to prove a synthetic performer offers "significant additional value" over a human actor [1][2].
• A proposed fee on synthetic performers, known as the "Tilly Tax," was rejected by studios during negotiations [1].
• The agreement aims to disincentivize the replacement of human actors through a mandatory negotiation and arbitration process [1][2].

Negotiating the "Significant Additional Value" Standard

The agreement emerged after studios rejected a union proposal that would have required productions using synthetic performers to pay the equivalent of a SAG-AFTRA member's salary into a compensation fund [1]. Two studio sources told TheWrap that this concept, colloquially referred to as the "Tilly Tax," was a nonstarter for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) because the use of synthetic performers remains largely hypothetical [1]. Instead, the parties agreed to a framework where the AMPTP commits to "overwhelmingly" using union performers and prohibits the use of a synthetic for a role a union performer could fill unless the synthetic brings "significant additional value" [1].

Crucially, the contract does not define "significant additional value," leaving the term open to interpretation and potential arbitration [1]. Under the new rules, producers must notify and bargain with the union to demonstrate this value, a process that SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland estimates would take roughly one month [1]. If an agreement cannot be reached, the union may arbitrate for damages that are not necessarily limited to the compensation a natural performer would have received [1].

Distinctions Between Replicas and Synthetics

The contract draws a sharp distinction between digital replicas and synthetic performers. Digital replicas, which use AI to replicate an actual living or deceased performer, require informed consent and fair compensation [2]. In contrast, synthetics—characters not based on any real person—are permitted under "unusual circumstances" provided the significant value test is met [2].

Crabtree-Ireland noted that the union would challenge justifications based on actor safety by asking why a digital replica of a union member could not be used instead, ensuring a performer is compensated and consent is obtained [1]. This distinction is intended to narrow the use of synthetics, as the capabilities of replicas and synthetics are described as having "very little distinction" [1].