KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Movie-goers have been flocking to theaters for a blockbuster double-feature of Barbie and Oppenheimer since their debut on July 21.
In the meantime, the actors and writers responsible for creating what is on the screen will continue their strike against Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers Tuesday night with a local rally at Mill Creek Park.
“We’re kind of all in solidarity with the mind that if we don’t do this now, it will get worse,” said Kansas City-based actor and producer Meagan Flynn-Mesmer. “So, this was the time to do it.”
SAG-AFTRA’s more than 160,000 members advocate for fair compensation, transparency and rules for the use of artificial intelligence.
“I think one of the biggest misconceptions about the strike is that this is a bunch of millionaire actors striking for more money,” said Flynn-Mesmer.
Fellow actor Walter Coppage said most actors based in Kansas City and throughout the country are making less than $60,000 a year, many struggling to meet a $26,000 threshold for union insurance.
“This is a strike about the journeyman actors and the journeyman workers,” Coppage said. “These are the people who make the content we watch all the time that are in these shows.”
Both Coppage and Flynn-Mesmer found alternatives for work in their field. Coppage is working behind the scenes as an independent film producer while Coppage is taking the stage with the “Funny Girl” tour starting this weekend.
“You lean into your survival skills and your survival jobs, and you do that anyway,” Coppage said. “The vast majority of us don’t do this as a full-time living and have to have a secondary income.”
Local actors and union supporters are gathering at 6 p.m. on Aug. 1 at Mill Creek Park for a rally in solidarity with people on strike.
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