Work on Grand Theft Auto 6 will continue despite the fact that the game is being published by one of the companies involved in the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike.
Reaching out to Kotaku, a spokesperson for the publishers, which includes Rockstar Games parent company Take-Two, confirmed that "GTA 6 is exempt" from the strike. Search results in the SAG-AFTRA database of struck projects also confirm that work can continue to be performed on the highly anticipated blockbuster game. Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the video game companies involved in the negotiations, also confirmed that any game in development before September 2023, which likely applies to Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto 6, is also exempt.
We don't know which performers in the SAG-AFTRA union are involved with the game as Rockstar has yet to formally announce the voice cast for Grand Theft Auto 6.
Actors and performers in the union SAG-AFTRA started their strike against video game companies on Friday after negotiations that have been ongoing for more than a year and a half broken down around the issue of AI protections. Union members approved a strike authorization back in September, and on Friday game performers -- which includes voice actors, motion capture artists, stunt performers, and others whose recorded work is used during game production -- stopped all work.
Some of the biggest video game publishers are involved in the negotiations including Activision, Electronic Arts, WB Games, Epic Games, Disney, and Take-Two (the parent company of GTA 6 developer Rockstar Games).
One of the central points of contention with the negotiations seemed to revolve around the use of A.I. in video game development. “We’re not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse A.I. to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough,” SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher wrote in a statement.
In response, the video game companies' own spokesperson, Audrey Cooling, defended: “We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions. Our offer is directly responsive to SAG-AFTRA’s concerns and extends meaningful AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the [Interactive Media Agreement].”
The last SAG-AFTRA game actors strike was back in 2016, and it lasted for nearly a year. Meanwhile, SAG-AFTRA members went on strike against major Hollywood studios between July and November of last year. Their contract negotiations also focused heavily on the use of generative AI by Hollywood studios for movies.
While many future games will likely be impacted by the ongoing strike if a deal can't be reached soon, it sounds as though development on Grand Theft Auto 6 will continue unaffected which is great news for fans who have been waiting for over a decade for the next installment. GTA 6 is expected to release in 2025 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.