Fran Drescher Gives Advice to Aspiring Union Members + Talks ‘Huge Threat’ of AI

SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher isn’t just a “millennial whisperer,” fashion icon, and famed rocker of a red lip; she’s also a fearless advocate for performers’ rights, a self-proclaimed “fierce beast,” and this year’s recipient of the Backstage Vanguard Award. It’s been just under a year since the historic 2023 actors’ strike ended, and Drescher is reflecting on the union’s hard-fought progress, the ongoing challenges faced by performers, and why it’s vital to nurture creativity as a “greater good.”

Drescher recommends Backstage to those looking for their big break. 

Drescher will receive the Vanguard Award at this year’s That’s Voiceover! Career Expo taking place Dec. 5–7 at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott. She says she’s “delighted” to be honored with the prestigious award—a collaboration between Backstage Magazine and the Society of Voice Arts and Sciences recognizing excellence in community advocacy and voice acting—not least because of the impact Backstage has had on her career.

“We couldn’t wait for [the publication] to come out and read it,” she says. “It was really a big part of our lives, me and all my friends who were aspiring to be professional actors…. It continues to play a big role in the lives of talent, my [SAG] members, and those aspiring to become members.” 

For those seeking to join the union, Drescher recommends working with an agent, attending acting classes, and harnessing the power of social capital. “It’s good to have an agent, because the agent will submit you,” she says. Not repped yet? Take “acting classes where you’re with other actors that may be a little farther along than you,” then ask if they can help you meet their agent. This connection can help you, she explains. “And just as soon as you get a job that qualifies you, join [SAG]—and then you’re in. And then you have the clout of being considered a professional working actor.”

She sees AI as a “huge threat” to performers. 

Drescher has been vocal about her concern regarding the potential for AI to displace human performers, arguing that technological advancements must be balanced with consideration for the creative workforce. “If there is a technological invention that comes from a person that lacks empathy, then maybe that’s not the invention we need,” she says. “I see this AI thing as a huge threat—and we really are right in the center.

“We’re selling art,” she continues. “It’s a collaborative art form. It’s hit and miss. But the way things are right now in film and television, these megacorporations expect a certain yield every quarter. And that creates this gig worker mentality and this need to cut corners and this need to avoid taking any risks.”

But to those megacorporations, Drescher has a powerful message: “Do not think that you can disrespect and dishonor my members by ripping us off.”

Her outlook about the state of the actors’ union is hopeful.

The 2023 strike resulted in a new agreement that Drescher says delivered a “seminal” TV/Theatrical contract for actors that elevated their status and bargaining power. Victories include gains in streaming residuals and provisions around the use of artificial intelligence—wins that Drescher says translate to the union’s ongoing strike against video game publishers.

“We are the first union in U.S. history to make AI a negotiating point,” she points out. “And the subsequent contracts are getting even stronger…. I think that we’re in a very good and healthy way. We’ve been repositioned in terms of how we are looked upon, what we are thought of, and our place on the food chain. We’re the fierce beasts who fight on the side of fair and right fearlessly.”

“We’ve been elevated in the zeitgeist,” she adds. “And there’s a new kind of respect for our positioning and what we think about things because we didn’t just speak for ourselves. We spoke for labor around the world and we ignited a hot labor summer.”

This ignition has already engendered positive changes for video game voice actors, who operate under SAG’s Interactive Media contract. More than 80 games have signed tiered-budget or interim video game contracts allowing work during the strike. These agreements—which Drescher calls “AI being done right”—set minimum session-based compensation rates for digital replica creation and establish protective guidelines requiring informed consent for continued developmental and training use.

Drescher is fighting for an industrywide transformation founded in empathy.

Looking ahead to the future of entertainment, Drescher remains steadfast in her commitment to protecting performers’ rights and shaping a more equitable industry. She champions a paradigm shift that recognizes the unique value offered by performers by nurturing artistry and empathy. Only then, she believes, will the entertainment world thrive.

It’s “the thrill of the creation, the joy of collaborating into an art form that can have an enduring impact on culture that can actually move people,” she says. “We need to look from a global perspective down on who we are and why we exist and what we need to do to be better.”