SAG President Fran Drescher Deems Actors' Strike A 'Turning Point', Calls The Award Night 'Crescendo To A Stressful Period'

The 30^th edition of the Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles took place on Sunday morning IST. While the award ceremony was graced by many celebrities, the President of the SAG-AFTRA, Fran Drescher, also marked her presence. No one seems to appear happier with the big success of last year’s much-needed SAG-AFTRA strike than her, who’s feeling “victorious.” She labelled the award ceremony to be “the cherry on the whipped cream” following a difficult year (in reference to the labour strikes).

Making her award to the main ceremony, she stopped to have a quick chat with PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly at the red carpet of the award ceremony. She stated, “We’re here, we’re all together, we’re celebrating who we are. It’s really a crescendo to what really was a stressful and difficult period, but a seminal one and a turning point I think for the SAG-AFTRA members.”

The ‘Nanny’ actress characterized the actors’ union as “the most powerful union in the world” before recollecting her efforts in providing support to its members throughout the enduring strike. “I gave them the permission to have an ego for themselves, to appreciate that they are the centre of the wheels in this industry. That it can’t be done without them, they’re foundational contributors, they’re better than what they're doing to us, and it’s a time of reckoning,” she said, adding, “Everybody has to come to the table and accept that this is a turning point — and a seminal contract was required.”

She also took to the stage at the main ceremony to shed light on the same.

For those not versed, the strike was conducted by actors and SAG-AFTRA members for improved compensation, better working conditions, and contracts incorporating provisions related to artificial intelligence. The strike started in July and went on till November. At the beginning of the strikes, Drescher, who has been serving as a President since 2022, called these strikes “a moment of history that is a moment of truth.”