“The Rock”, seen in particular in “Fast and Furious”, made a major donation to SAG-AFTRA. A sum “in seven figures” which will make it possible to support the actors in financial difficulty during the strike.
Dwayne Johnson, also known as ‘The Rock’, has donated at least $1 million to actors union SAG-AFTRA amid historic strike action in West Coast Hollywood the United States. The precise amount given by “The Rock” is confidential, but variety indicates that the sum is “seven digits”.
“This is the largest individual donation we have ever received,” rejoices Cyd Wilson, director of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, to the specialized media.
“This check will help thousands of actors, whether for food, to ensure the safety of their children or to run their car”, continues the head of the union.
“I’m on your side and I’m not going anywhere”
As soon as the Hollywood strike began on July 13, 2023, the SAG-AFTRA Foundation wrote a letter to the union’s 2,700 highest-earning actor members asking for their help, as had been the case during the pandemic, explains Variety.
“In such a moment, I am (by your side) and I will not go anywhere, whatever your needs,” Dwayne Johnson reportedly replied at the time, according to comments reported to variety by Courtney B. Vance, President of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation.
“He stepped in in an important and historic way to help us because he is one of us,” she says.
This significant participation of “The Rock” in the strike fund could encourage other celebrities of the seventh art to financially support the strikers, hopes Courtney B. Vance.
For nearly two weeks, thousands of actors have been on strike in Hollywood. Actors and screenwriters are demanding in particular an increase in their remuneration. But the two professions also want guarantees concerning the use of artificial intelligence (AI), for prevent the latter from generating scripts or cloning their voices and images.