Will the Actors Strike Impact Reality Shows: The Voice, AGT, DWTS, America’s Got Talent, The Masked Singer and more?
On July 14 the Screen Actors Guild went on strike. Thousands of actors have been walking the picket lines across Los Angeles and New York ever since, and the industry is settling for for what could be a long slog.
But how will the strike impact unscripted television? Many cast members on these shows are SAG members. Will shows such as American Idol, The Voice, Dancing with the Stars, America’s Got Talent and The Masked Singer be affected?
Currently, The Voice is taping shows for both season 24 and 25, and have not been interrupted. Season 24 Blind auditions are finished, with season 25 auditions coming up. The Battle rounds for both seasons are scheduled for August. 1iota, the company that fills studio audiences for shows are currently taking reservations. See the schedule HERE.
Reality, variety and game shows will PROBABLY not be affected
According to Deadline, although actors make up the casts of many reality shows (The Voice coaches are musical artists first and foremost, but many of them also have acting careers), they have signed separate contracts.
“Variety shows, reality series and game shows are covered under the SAG-AFTRA National Code of Fair Practice for Network Television Broadcasting,” according to Deadline “which is better known as Network Code. It is separate to the film and TV collective bargaining agreement that SAG-AFTRA and the AMPTP had been negotiating and is between the guild and the Big 4 broadcast networks as well as other producers. It is the same rule that applies to daytime soaps and morning shows.”
That means, networks will be able to plough ahead with their respective unscripted heavy fall schedules.
The Voice and The Masked Singer are continuing with their summer taping schedules
America’s Got Talent begins broadcasting live shows in August, while American Idol will begin filming auditions in front of the judges in the fall. The Masked Singer begins taping Season 10 on Monday July 17. Dancing with the Stars is set to air live beginning in September.
However, Deadline reports that “…the networks are operating on a case-by-case basis and insiders admit that there may need to be some modifications to certain shows. There may be competition shows that may need to lean into athletes and musicians, rather than actors, for their contestants as some actors drop out.”
In other words, some actors and SAG members may feel uncomfortable continuing to work while their fellow actors walk the picket lines. Solidarity make keep some actors off of reality shows, even though technically it wouldn’t be “scabby” to work in the reality realm.
“So far, the strike hasn’t affected unscripted but what we can’t predict is whether or not some SAG-AFTRA members will strike in solidarity. I sure hope not but it’s early. We’re holding our breath,” a source told Deadline.
Which shows COULD be affected?
As we mentioned, the competition reality shows are mostly filled with musical artists who might act on the side. The Voice season 24 will feature John Legend, Gwen Stefani, Reba McEntire and Niall Horan. Reba and John will return for season 25 alongside Dan + Shay, and Chance the Rapper. Only Reba has had a high profile acting career in that group (she headed a sitcom Reba a few years ago).
American Idol judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry and Luke Bryan are musical artists. Hosts Carson Daly (The Voice). Ryan Seacrest (Idol) and Nick Cannon (Masked Singer) are career hosts.
On America’s Got Talent, Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara have impressive acting resumes (St. Elsewhere, Modern Family respectively), but haven’t worked as actors in a few years. Simon Cowell and Heidi Klum are reality stars at this point. Host Terry Crews is another actor with a long resume, but his last series, Brooklyn nine-nine ended a few years ago.
Possibly, The Masked Singer and DWTS may have to re-cast contestants
The Masked Singer and Dancing with the Stars casting could get a little dicey. Judge Ken Jeong is an actor, but FOX has kept him busy on various reality and game shows which he both stars on and produces. But while the actors on both shows (including DWTS’s Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough) make their livings from variety, game shows and reality at this point, the actors they cast could be problematic. It’s possible both shows may wind up leaning on singers, athletes and reality stars for their upcoming seasons.
The actors strike comes on the heels of the writers strike, which began on May 2. On reality shows “writers” are usually billed as part of production and are not members of WGA (Writers Guild of America). Both strikes will affect nighttime and daytime talk shows (The Kelly Clarkson Show and The Jennifer Hudson Show fall premieres will be postponed). The Emmys, set to air in September will most assuredly be pushed back. The Daytime Emmys have been on hold since June.
