Mandy Moore and a handful of her former “This Is Us” co-stars stepped out on the picket line on July 14.
On the first day of the SAG-AFTRA actors strike, the actor reunited with Jon Huertas and Chrissy Metz. Moore, who portrayed Rebecca Pearson on the NBC drama, shared a series of photos with her former “This Is Us” crew, as well as Juliana Dever, Rachel Leah Cohen, Seamus Dever and Gerardo Celasco.
“Day 1. Proud to stand with my fellow @sagaftra and @wgawest members demanding a fair contract. #sagaftrastrike #wgastrong #unionstrong," Moore captioned her post.
Moore can be seen wearing an olive-colored bucket hat, white tee shirt and beige pants with a name tag that reads “Mandy.”
On July 13, SAG-AFTRA — which is a labor union representing about 160,000 people in the entertainment industry that includes actors, recording artists, radio personalities and other media professionals — announced that they would be going on strike after weeks of failed negotiations between their union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
The AMPTP represents major motion picture studios including Paramount, Sony, Netflix, Walt Disney Studios and Warner Bros. Comcast — the corporation that owns TODAY’s parent company, NBCUniversal — is one of the entertainment companies represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher said in a press conference, “If we don’t stand tall right now, we are all going to be in trouble. We are all going to be in jeopardy of being replaced by machines and big business.”
The union is asking for better pay, working conditions and contracts that address concerns over artificial intelligence. The strike comes amid the current Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike that began on May 2.
“Hacks” star Hannah Einbinder, “Schitt’s Creek” actor Dustin Milligan, Josh Gadd, Sean Astin and many more actors have been spotted on the picket line in Los Angeles and New York.
In the meantime, many film and television productions are shutting down as actors and writers are not working while on strike. As for how long the strikes will go on, Drescher said that it’s “up to” the AMPTP. “We’re open (to) talking to them tonight. All of this is because of their behavior. It’s up to them,” she said.