Fran Drescher reelected as SAG-AFTRA president.
Actress Fran Drescher Wins Re-Election as Union President
Actress Fran Drescher has emerged victorious in her union’s election, securing another two-year term as president. Drescher, known for her role in the hit series Stranger Things, began her presidency in the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists in 2021. She narrowly defeated actor Matthew Modine to claim the position. Her opponent, actress Maya Gilbert-Dunbar, lost by a wide margin, with Drescher capturing an impressive 81% of the vote.
Challenging the Strike
Gilbert-Dunbar ran against Drescher with the aim of ending an ongoing strike. The SAG-AFTRA members received their ballots on August 9, long after the strike had commenced. The votes were finally counted on Friday, with a 22% voter turnout among eligible members. Gilbert-Dunbar, in her bid to halt the strike, urged Drescher and her supporters to take drastic action, saying, “Chain your a**es up to the damn door of the Sherman Oaks building to show how serious you are. People can’t afford this. Strikes were never meant to last months and months. An effective strike should be short and sweet.”
Gilbert-Dunbar, a well-known television actress and writer, has appeared in popular shows like The Mentalist, Harry’s Law, and Southland. She has been married to fellow actor Rockmond Dunbar for nearly a decade.
Optimism for the Future
Following her re-election, Drescher expressed her optimism for the future, stating, “These are dynamic times, and as one member body, we will weather the storms, stand on our principles, and make sure our major contributions to this sag-aftra-president/” title=”Fran Drescher reelected as SAG-AFTRA president.”>collaborative art form shall never again be diminished but rather be exalted. Much has been accomplished in the past two years, but I feel great optimism that the next two will be our greatest ever!”
A Multifaceted Career
While many know Drescher for her iconic role as Fran Fine in The Nanny, she is also an accomplished writer and creator of the series. Her writing debut came with The Nanny, but she had already made a name for herself as an actress in projects like Fame, Nine to Five, and Law and Order. The series went on to win an Emmy, and Drescher received two Emmy nominations and a Golden Globe nomination of her own.
In addition to her television work, Drescher has lent her voice to the Hotel Transylvania sequels and made a guest appearance on the short-lived Mr. Mayor series. Most recently, she starred in the made-for-TV movie Dawn, which was released this year.
Continuity in Leadership
Joely Fisher has also been reelected as secretary-treasurer, serving another two-year term alongside Drescher.
SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 performers and has been on strike for 56 days as of Friday. The negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers revolve around increased wages and protections against artificial intelligence.
Meanwhile, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) has been engaged in its own strike for nearly 130 days, with 11,500 writers participating. The WGA is also in conflict with the same group of studios, networks, and streamers, demanding higher wages. The last time both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA were simultaneously on strike was in 1960, with Ronald Reagan leading the charge before his presidential campaign.
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