The popular online multiplayer game “League of Legends” has become the latest casualty in a growing dispute between Hollywood’s actors union and a voiceover company. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) has called a strike against the game, accusing Formosa Interactive of attempting to circumvent the ongoing video game strike by hiring non-union actors, The Associated Press reports.
The dispute stems from SAG-AFTRA’s broader strike against major game companies in July, which was initiated after over a year of stalled negotiations over the use of unregulated artificial intelligence (AI) in voice acting. Formosa, a union signatory and a member of the bargaining group in those talks, is accused of violating the strike by attempting to “cancel” an unnamed video game covered by the work stoppage and then secretly transferring it to a shell company to hire non-union talent.
SAG-AFTRA has filed an unfair labor practice charge against Formosa with the National Labor Relations Board and has labeled this action as “egregious violations of core tenets of labor law.” The union argues that Formosa is interfering with performers’ right to unionize and is discriminating against them.
“League of Legends” developer Riot Games has distanced itself from the dispute, stating that they have “nothing to do” with the union’s complaint. They emphasize that they have only ever requested Formosa to work with union performers in the US and have never asked them to cancel a registered game.
This strike against “League of Legends” further escalates the conflict between SAG-AFTRA and game developers over AI in voice acting. The union has called for stricter regulations and protections for performers in the face of AI technology that could potentially replace them.
