Hollywood studios have reached agreement with key unions for new on-set Covid-19 protocols for movie and TV productions.

The industry’s largest unions — including the Director’s Guild of America, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers — confirmed July 19 that they came to terms with Hollywood’s top studios.
 
The tentative short-term deal will relax some of the Covid safety protocols that were put in place last year for movie and TV productions. The new processes take vaccinations into account and ease testing and mask mandates in specific, predetermined settings.

“The modifications center on workplace practices for fully vaccinated cast and crew, including changes to outdoor masking requirements and updated mealtime protocols,” the studios and unions said in a joint statement.
 
Since implementing Covid safety rules in September to enable production to resume, unions have engaged in months of negotiations to accommodate for vaccinations while protecting union members who may be subjected to undue health risks if studios were to slash on-set requirements and rush to resume full-schedule production.
 
As Covid cases rise in Los Angeles, studios and unions remain vigilant to the risks of exposure. On July 20, production on FX’s “American Horror Story” was halted after an actor in the show’s Zone A group tested positive for the coronavirus.