SAG-AFTRA has struck League of Legends over allegations that one of its production partners attempted to get around the ongoing video game actors’ strike. Based on this ruling, SAG-AFTRA members will no longer be able to provide covered services to League of Legends, until the ongoing strike action is over.
League of Legends had been a non-struck project prior to this ruling, with SAG-AFTRA members able to provide voice work and other services to the game. That will cease from today, and the game will be officially marked as struck in SAG-AFTRA’s books.
According to a notice from SAG-AFTRA, the decision was handed down due to an alleged subversion of the ongoing strike rules. The union has alleged that Formosa, a company providing voiceover services to League of Legends that is a union signatory, attempted to “cancel” one of its upcoming video games. When it was told that wasn’t possible, it’s alleged Formosa “secretly transferred the game to a shell company” and then sent out casting notices for non-union talent.
SAG-AFTRA alleges that Formosa has violated SAG-AFTRA’s union terms by allegedly initiating this action, and as a result, it has chosen to strike League of Legends. That’s despite its developer, Riot Games, seemingly not being involved in these circumstances.
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“SAG-AFTRA charges that these serious actions are egregious violations of core tenets of labour law – that employers cannot interfere with performers’ rights to form or join a union and they cannot discriminate against union performers,” the union said on its website. “The unilateral and surreptitious transfer of union work to a ‘non-union’ shell company is an impermissible and appalling attempt to evade a strike action and destroy performers’ rights under labour law.”
As further detailed by SAG-AFTRA, Formosa is one of several companies which has not agreed to protect union members from the “unethical use” of AI in performance work.
In a statement shared with media outlets including GameSpot, a Riot Games spokesperson said: “League of Legends has nothing to do with the complaint mentioned in SAG-AFTRA’s press release. We want to be clear: Since becoming a union project five years ago, League of Legends has only asked Formosa to engage with Union performers in the US and has never once suggested doing otherwise.”
“In addition, we’ve never asked Formosa to cancel a game that we’ve registered. All of the allegations in SAG-AFTRA’s press release relating to canceling a game or hiring non-union talent relate to a non-Riot game, and have nothing to do with League or any of our games.”
SAG-AFTRA is yet to respond to this statement.
