Seth Rogen Calls Out Streamer CEOs’ ‘Insane’ Salaries, Says He’s ‘Distressed’ By Their ‘Secretiveness’ Regarding Viewership

BreAnna Bell

The cast of Apple TV+’s “Platonic” was all smiles and laughs as they celebrated the premiere of their rom-com, but the Wednesday night carpet was clouded by Hollywood’s ongoing writers strike.

Some of the show’s stars including longtime friends Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, and Carla Gallo revealed their thoughts on the face off between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers while walking the green carpet outside of Regal LA Live theater in downtown Los Angeles.

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“I’m personally distressed by not having any sense of how successful these shows and movies we make for streaming services are,” said Rogen. “The secretiveness only makes me think that they’re making way more money off of all of us than they want to share with anybody. These executives are making insane salaries that you would only make if you are running an incredibly profitable business.”

“Thank God for these labor unions and their ability to force these gigantic corporations who banded together to drive down the wages of workers to actually do something every once in a while and act fairly and equitably,” said Rogen.

The WGA called for the strike May 1 after the guild failed to reach an agreement with the AMPTP, prompting writers to picket studios across the country. As a result, production has been halted on several programs including “Abbott Elementary,” “Yellowjackets,” and “Big Mouth.”

As far as Apple’s titles are concerned, the shows seem to be in good shape. Byrne, who also stars in the streamer’s “Physical,” confirmed that production on Season 3 of the comedy wrapped just a week before the strike was called. Her long-anticipated horror film, “Insidious: The Red Door” will also arrive as originally planned, she shared. Though, she still has her own concerns about the ongoing negotiations — even more so, with DGA negotiations taking place now and SAG talks looming around the corner.

“It’s long overdue to reevaluate and restructure these contracts that we’re under. The DGA is obviously up, but it starts with and ends with the writers. Without the writing, there’s no directing, there’s no acting, there’s no catering, there’s no transpo, there’s no electric,” said Byrne.

“The way that they’ve been treated and what needs to be changed is overdue and I stand in solidarity with them. The way that the contract is structured and what they demand of the writers is untenable,” she adds.

Gallo’s concern as an actor resides in the issue of residuals. “I am definitely representative of actors who work for a period of time and then don’t work for very long periods of time. I survive off the residuals,” she shared.

“‘Crossing Jordan,’ I found a residual from it. I was like, When did I do ‘Crossing Jordan?’ I mean, I get like 10 cents, but that is what keeps us alive in the dry times,” she adds.

“Platonic” serves as a reunion for Gallo, Byrne, and Rogen after working together in Nicholas Stoller’s 2014 film, “Neighbors.” “I’ve known Seth since he was 18. I was on ‘Undeclared’ with him,” Gallo shared, noting that Stoller, who created “Platonic,” was a writer on “Undeclared.”

“So we’ve all known each other for 20 some odd years. Rose and I have been very close friends since ‘Neighbors,'” Gallo explained.

“I’ve made a lot of things examining male friendships almost exclusively. As soon as I heard the idea of it’s focusing on a male-and-female friendship, that was one of the things that instantly felt very intuitive, but also very original,” Rogen added.

“Platonic” follows a platonic pair of former best friends approaching midlife (Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne) who reconnect after a long rift. The duo’s friendship becomes all consuming and hilariously destabilizing. Luke Macfarlane, Tre Hale, Andrew Lopez also star.

The series premieres on Apple TV+ on May 24.

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