Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson made a “historic” donation to support the ongoing Hollywood actors’ strike this month.
Earlier this month, negotiations broke down between the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) and the US actors’ union SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild—American Federation of Television and Radio Artists), with talks relating to base pay, residuals, and artificial intelligence in the industry.
On July 13—the day the strike was declared—SAG-AFTRA Foundation president Courtney B. Vance and executive director Cyd Wilson wrote a letter to 2,700 of the union’s highest-paid actors to highlight the financial hardship industry professionals would face as they stopped working (via Variety).
After sending the letter, Johnson’s team reached out to offer help. The exact amount of the seven-figure sum, however, is kept confidential.
“It was a love fest. It’s like, ‘Man, you’re stepping up in a way that allows others to understand the dire necessity of it,’” Vance told Johnson about his contribution. “This is him saying, ‘In such a time as this, I’m here and I’m not going anywhere, whatever you need me to do.’ And that sends a huge message to other folks to do the same thing.”
Wilson also told Variety: “Having been through this during COVID and having such an impressive response from our own membership to take care of their own, when the strike was decided, Courtney and I sat down with our team and said, ‘Here we go again.'”
“We rely on donations and grants to provide services; we have been very fortunate to raise enough money to cover all of our programs,” Wilson added. “But when we hit a crisis like this and spend millions and millions of dollars on financial assistance, we need our high-profile talent who can afford it. These talents are in the best position to help others.”
Wilson said that the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s grants offer up to $1,500 (£1,166) per individual member, but in certain conditions, this can increase to $6,000 (£4,666).
The executive director also estimated that between 7,000 and 10,000 members would need those services.
Vance added that Johnson let everyone know, “‘I’m here. What are you going to do?'”
