Los Angeles mayor keeps eye on SAG negotiations

According to Variety, Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan is keeping a close watch on negotiations between the Screen Actor Guild (SAG) and the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists (AFTRA). A new contract deal between actors and major studios will likely be reached near the June 30 expiration of current contract. Riordan previously voiced concerns over the impact a strike would have on the city, and in a news conference last month he urged a compromise between members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and AFTRA. The mayor, whose second four-year term also expires on June 30, previously released a study suggesting that a five-month WGA strike and a three-month actors’ strike might cost the Los Angeles area over 80,000 jobs and almost $7 billion in lost revenue. Talks between the two sides resume at the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers headquarters on Wednesday.