It’s been made abundantly clear that studios are investing a ton of money in artificial intelligence. According to Deadline, Netflix has confirmed this use of funds by creating a job listing for an AI Product Manager that could pay up to a whopping $900k per year.
To writers and actors of the guilds striking, this seems like an extreme slap in the face, considering AI protection is one of the largest topics fueling their strike. The job description reads, “Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence is powering innovation in all areas of the business. From helping us buy and create content, helping members choose the right title for them through personalization, to optimizing our payment processing and other revenue-focused initiatives.”
Perfectly timed, this brings to light the Black Mirror episode, from the latest season, in which an individual doesn’t realize she has signed away her digital likeness by agreeing to the terms and conditions of the Netflix look-alike in the in the series called Streamberry. The episode is titled “Joan is Awful” and seems to be growing more and more feasible.
Rob Delaney (Ron’s Gone Wrong, The Good House), who starred in the episode, responds to the job posting, saying, “So $900k/yr per soldier in their godless AI army when that amount of earnings could earn thirty-five actors and their families for SAG-AFTRA health insurance is just ghoulish. Having been poor and rich in this business, I can assure you there’s enough money to go around; it’s just about priorities.”
Writer Elizabeth Benjamin (Dead to Me, The Flight Attendant) took to Twitter to share her thoughts and feelings on the back-stabbing job posting. Benjamin says, “Cue vomit. This turns my stomach. Stay strong comrades. The future of humanity hinges on out ability to preserve humanity. #AI Netflix lists two massive-salary jobs in the face of actors’ AI concerns.”
Jorge A. Reyes (Kevin Hill, Queen of the South), also a writer, reacted to the job posting as well, saying, “What the absolute fuck? And they don’t pay most actors enough to qualify for health insurance. Fuck these guys.” Another writer, Christopher Derrick (Fuck You Pay Me!, Architects of Crime) says, “Talk about tone deafness, FFS!”
Triple threat Davila Ali Rajah (The Good Time Girls, NCIS), who is a writer, producer and actor, points out that “studios have already been using AI and probably some unethical ways because regulations are not in place, and what we are asking for will cost them money on shit they’ve already done but haven’t released…”
Deadline attempted to reach Netflix to provide a comment, but Netflix declined.