Sean Penn Throws Full Support Behind WGA Strike, Says Studios Considering AI Is A “Human Obscenity”
Josh Berger
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Hollywood actor and left-wing activist Sean Penn has thrown his full support behind the Writers Guild of America strike, calling out film studios who consider making use of AI to produce scripts.
Sean Penn during interview with Tracy Smith via CBS Sunday Morning, YouTube
Whilst promoting his new movie, Black Flies, Penn said, ““The industry has been upending the writers, actors and directors for a very, very long time.”
“My full support is with the writers guild,” the actor went on to reveal. “There are a lot of new concepts that are being tossed about, including the use of AI. And it just strikes me as human obscenity that there’s been a pushback [from the studios] on that.”
Sam (Sean Penn) and her daughter Lucy (Dakota Fanning) go to a family restaurant in I Am Sam (2001), Warner Bros. Pictures
The insufferably woke actor would go on to decry some of Hollywood’s largest studios, labelling them as “bankers guild” and pointed out that “the first thing we should do in these [strike] conversations is change the [name of the] Producers Guild (PGA) and title them how they behave, which is the bankers guild.”
“It’s difficult for so many writers and people in the industry who cannot work,” Penn added. The I Am Sam actor would then clarify his statement, noting that he didn’t mean to slam the Producers Guild Association.
“I misspoke, he told Variety. “I meant to say AMPTP [Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers], not PGA.”
Sean Penn stars as John Vogel in FLAG DAY A Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures film Photo credit: Courtesy of Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures Inc. © 2021 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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Penn is not the first actor to openly express his support for the writers going on strike, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem producer Seth Rogen has also weighed in on the situation earlier this month.
The Hollywood elitist declared that he is “personally distressed” by the high salaries of streaming service CEOs and their penchant for keeping viewership numbers hidden from the public.
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“I’m personally distressed by not having any sense of how successful these shows and movies we make for streaming services are,” Rogen told Variety. “The secretiveness only makes me think that they’re making way more money off of all of us than they want to share with anybody.”
He added, “These executives are making insane salaries that you would only make if you are running an incredibly profitable business.”
Seth Rogen as Will in Platonic’s Official Trailer (2023), Apple TV+ via Official Website
Star Trek: Picard actor Wil Wheaton went as far as issuing a threat to Jeopardy! host Ken Jennings, after it was reported he would be replacing Mayim Bialik — who reportedly ceased to host the game show in solidarity with the writers.
“This is a VERY small town, Ken Jennings, and we will all remember this,” threatened Wheaton in a Facebook post. “Your privilege may protect you right now, but we will *never* forget, he added, including the #WGAStrong hashtag.
Wil Wheaton speaking at the 2012 Phoenix Comicon in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
As the post gained traction, the woke actor felt the need to address his own comments, claiming that he didn’t mean to threaten Jennings.
“I’m deeply disappointed with Ken,” Wheaton prefaced. “I think he’s a great host, an obviously sensational player, and the couple times I’ve met him, I’ve enjoyed our conversations.”
Wil Wheaton speaking at the 2019 WonderCon, for “The Big Bang Theory”, at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California. Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
He went on, “The fact is, he has an enormously high profile, and his choices affect the writers of his show and the entire WGA in a meaningful way that people pay attention to. He is certainly more influential, and can have a more direct impact, than me.”
“I hoped he would use that privilege to put the needs of the many ahead of the greed of the few. He didn’t, and speaking only for myself, I will remember that. That isn’t a threat; it’s keeping a promise to my fellow workers, and honoring the sacrifices of all who came and fought before us,” Wheaton concluded.
Wil Wheaton speaking at the 2012 Phoenix Comicon in Phoenix, Arizona. Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
What do you make of Sean Penn’s comments regarding the Writers Guild of America strike and AI?
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