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Hollywood’s 2026 Contracts: What the WGA, SAG-AFTRA and DGA Deals Changed

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Hollywood’s three biggest guilds all settled new contracts with the studios in the spring of 2026, and none of them went on strike to get there. The Writers Guild ratified first, in April, the SAG-AFTRA 2026 contract followed in June, and the Directors Guild closed the cycle later that month.

The short version: All three deals run four years instead of the usual three, so the next showdown is pushed to 2030. Writers secured money to stabilize their health plan; actors won rules that make AI-generated synthetic performers the exception, plus a path to merge their two pension plans; directors got the largest health contributions in their plan’s history. The contrast with 2023, when writers and actors spent months on picket lines, is the story.

Union 2026 deal Runs
WGA (writers) Tentative deal approved by the negotiating committee in early April; ratified with 90.38% voting yes May 2, 2026 to May 1, 2030
SAG-AFTRA (actors) Tentative deal May 2; ratified with 91.42% yes on a 19.25% return July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2030
DGA (directors) Tentative deal June 9; board approved unanimously; members approved it “overwhelmingly” Four years

How the 2026 talks unfolded

The studios bargain together through the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), and this time the order was unusual. TheWrap reported that SAG-AFTRA went first, opening talks in February, pausing after five weeks in March so the AMPTP could meet its scheduled sessions with the writers, then returning in late April.

The writers moved fast. After less than a month of bargaining, NPR reported, the WGA’s negotiating committee announced on a Saturday in early April that it had “unanimously approved a four-year tentative agreement with the AMPTP for the 2026 Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA).” Actors reached their tentative deal on May 2. The DGA, which began talks on May 11 ahead of its June 30 expiration, reached its agreement on June 9, 2026.

When the directors ratified, the AMPTP declared the round over: “With the spring 2026 bargaining cycle now complete, the AMPTP thanks the DGA, WGA and SAG-AFTRA for their thoughtful and collaborative approach to negotiations.”

What’s in the SAG-AFTRA 2026 contract

Members ratified the TV/theatrical agreements with 91.42% voting yes and 8.58% no, on a return of 19.25%, after a three-week vote that opened May 14, according to TheWrap. The new terms take effect July 1, 2026, and expire June 30, 2030. Four provisions matter most.

Synthetic performers. These are AI-generated characters that are not replicas of any real actor; TheWrap notes the issue became a flashpoint after the AI-generated character Tilly Norwood appeared the previous year. Under the new deal, a producer who wants to use one on a union production must show the synthetic adds “significant additional value” compared with a human performer and also with a digital replica of one. The contract does not define that phrase. Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union’s chief negotiator, argued the comparison with replicas is what gives it teeth, since a replica is built from a paid, consenting union actor: “There’s very little distinction between the two in terms of capabilities, so I think that narrows the use of synthetics in a very significant way.” Disputes go to an arbitrator. In Crabtree-Ireland’s summary, the aim is to “ensure synthetics remain the exception in our industry instead of the rule.”

One pension plan. SAG and AFTRA merged as unions in 2012 but kept separate retirement plans. The SAG-Producers Pension Plan and the AFTRA Retirement Fund are now set to combine into a single plan, with an extra 1% added to the studio contribution rate, and the merger is targeted for January 1, 2028.

A bigger cut of streaming hits. The 2023 deal created a bonus for streaming hits, part of which flows to a union fund. Under the new contract, a film or show watched by 20% of a service’s subscribers in its first 90 days triggers a fund payment worth 35% of the residuals owed to its actors, up from 25%.

Pay. The union’s summary, as analyzed by the trade blog Stand-In Central, sets 3% annual increases for stand-ins every July 1, taking their eight-hour day rate from $262 to about $270 in the first year.

The writers’ deal

The WGA’s membership ratified the 2026 Minimum Basic Agreement with 4,282 votes in favor (90.38%) and 456 against. The term runs from May 2, 2026 through May 1, 2030, which NPR noted is a year longer than the guild’s usual agreements.

Health care was the priority. The guild lists a 3.25% increase in the health contribution rate from May 2, 2026, plus higher contribution caps, which together are projected to add $280 million to the plan over the life of the deal. Minimums rise by a combined 10.5% over the term. The writers also improved streaming residuals and the viewership-based bonus they first won in 2023, set a new minimum for page-one rewrites and widened protections against unpaid work. WGAW President Michele Mulroney said the contract “returns our Health Fund to a sustainable path and builds on gains from the 2023 strike.”

The directors’ deal

The DGA, now led by president Christopher Nolan, said its three goals were to “secure our Health Plan, protect jobs, and ensure that our members remain secure as AI continues to impact our industry.” Its board backed the deal unanimously on June 12, and the member vote closed on June 25, 2026. TheWrap reported that Nolan and executive director Russell Hollander told members it passed “overwhelmingly.”

The guild’s own summary highlights the largest health plan contributions in its history (TheWrap put the increase at 24%), wage and residual gains, a promise from studio leadership to lobby for a federal film and television tax incentive, and new AI terms that give directors control over AI-generated footage. Our earlier coverage of the DGA’s push to protect directing jobs has background on the guild’s priorities.

How 2026 compares with the 2023 strike deals

In 2023 the writers struck from May until September 27, and the actors joined in July; the actors’ strike lasted 118 days before the tentative deal NPR reported on November 9, 2023. The deals that ended them laid the foundation that 2026 built on. Writers won viewership transparency from streamers for the first time. Actors won a contract the union valued at over one billion dollars, including what it called “unprecedented provisions for consent and compensation that will protect members from the threat of AI,” a first-ever streaming participation bonus and, Screen Daily reported, a requirement to hire intimacy coordinators for nude and simulated sex scenes (the subject of our piece on how actors handle nude scenes on set).

Issue 2023 actors’ deal 2026 actors’ deal
How it was won 118-day strike No strike; talks paused for the writers, then resumed
Length Three years Four years
Minimum pay 7%, then 4%, then 3.5% 3% a year for stand-ins, per the union’s summary
Streaming hits New bonus; 25% of the money to a union fund Fund share raised to 35%
AI Consent and pay for digital replicas Synthetics must show “significant additional value”
Pensions Separate SAG and AFTRA plans Merger targeted by January 1, 2028

The pattern is clear in the comparison. In 2023 the unions fought to get AI and streaming into their contracts at all. In 2026 they negotiated the details: who gets paid when a streaming hit breaks out, and what a studio has to prove before an AI performer replaces a person. For a look at the production trend driving that worry, see our report on AI-generated films as a low-cost streaming bet.

What happens next

With all three guilds locked in for four years, the next round of talks lines up for 2030: the writers’ agreement expires May 1, 2030, and the actors’ on June 30, 2030. The SAG-AFTRA pension merger, targeted for January 1, 2028, is the next milestone inside the current deals. The AI terms will be tested earlier, the first time a producer tries to cast a synthetic performer and has to argue “significant additional value” before the union or an arbitrator.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did SAG-AFTRA ratify the 2026 contract?

Yes. Members approved the TV/theatrical agreements with 91.42% voting yes and 8.58% no, on a 19.25% return, after a vote that opened on May 14. The contracts run from July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2030.

When does the SAG-AFTRA contract expire?

The 2026 TV/theatrical agreements expire on June 30, 2030, four years after they took effect instead of the usual three.

What does the 2026 SAG-AFTRA deal say about AI actors?

Producers who want to use a synthetic performer on a union production must show it brings significant additional value compared with both a human actor and a digital replica of one. The union can take disputes to an arbitrator, and the contract does not define what counts as significant additional value.

Was there a Hollywood strike in 2026?

No. The WGA, SAG-AFTRA and DGA all reached and ratified new four-year deals with the AMPTP between April and June 2026 without a strike.

How long was the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike?

The actors’ strike lasted 118 days. It began on July 14 and ended with the tentative agreement NPR reported on November 9, 2023.

Sources

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