While so-called option “holds” are not new, agents and managers have complained that their lengths have gotten longer, up to 24 months in some cases, limiting the ability of their clients to book work as studios and streamers decide whether to renew series. While this wasn’t much of an issue in the days when series typically went for 22 or more episodes per season. But Netflix, Amazon and other streamers typically run much shorter seasons of their series.
The “seven year rule” refers to a state law that limits the length of time that personal service employment contracts can be enforced. In 1987, the state legislature passed a carve out for the music industry. Under that exemption, recording artists can still exercise the seven-year rule to get out of their contracts, but labels can pursue damages for unproduced work. That, supporters of the bill say, has effectively locked recording artists into their contracts.
“The landscape of the entertainment industry has dramatically changed, yet companies still benefit from outdated laws that allow them to wield an overwhelming amount of control over artists,” Gonzalez said in a statement. “No worker should ever be bound to an unreasonable contract that holds them back from making decisions about their own livelihood.”
The legislation is backed by SAG-AFTRA and the Music Artists Coalition, but is likely to face opposition from record labels and studios. Other groups backing the legislation include theAccording to the supporters’ groups, the average number of episodes in a season on all platforms has fallen by 40 percent. The amount of time that actors are subject to option “holds” between productions has increased from 160 days to 120 days.