Actors' union clarifies Halloween strike rules after criticism from Ryan Reynolds, Mandy Moore

SAG-AFTRA is clarifying its Halloween strike rules after receiving backlash from Ryan Reynolds, Mandy Moore, and former SAG president Melissa Gilbert.

Earlier this week, the Screen Actors Guild published a now-deleted post on its website that offered "Halloween guidance" amid the actors' trike. In an infographic, the union encouraged members to dress as "generalized characters and figures (ghost, zombie, spider, etc.)" instead of sporting spooky struck-work costumes from popular movies and franchises like Barbie, Marvel, or Star Wars. However, in a statement released Friday night, SAG confirmed that these rules do not apply to stars' children.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty;Joe Lederer/Fox Ryan Reynolds; Reynolds as Deadpool

"SAG-AFTRA issued Halloween guidance in response to questions from content creators and members about how to support the strike during this festive season," the guild stated, per The Hollywood Reporter. "This was meant to help them avoid promoting struck work, and it is the latest in a series of guidelines we have issued. It does not apply to anyone's kids."

SAG-AFTRA SAG-AFTRA's Halloween strike guidelines

It continued, "We are on strike for important reasons, and have been for nearly 100 days. Our number-one priority remains getting the studios back to the negotiating table so we can get a fair deal for our members, and finally put our industry back to work."

The clarification comes amid a wave of backlash from actors including Reynolds, who immediately poked fun at SAG's Halloween costume rules and how they would affect children.

"I look forward to screaming 'scab' at my 8-year-old all night," he tweeted. "She's not in the union, but she needs to learn."

On her Instagram Story, Moore similarly called out the decision. "Is this a joke? Come on @sagaftra," she wrote. "This is what's important? We're asking you to negotiate in good faith on our behalf. So many folks across every aspect of this industry have been sacrificing mightily for months. Get back to the table and get a fair deal so everyone can get back to work. Please and thank you."

Gilbert, who served as SAG president from 2001 until 2005,  repeatedly tagged current president Fran Drescher in a scathing statement about the imposed guidelines.

"THIS is what you guys come up with?" she wrote on Instagram alongside an image of a Hollywood Reporter story about the guild's Halloween rules. "Literally no one cares what anyone wears for Halloween. I mean, do you really think this kind of infantile stuff is going to end the strike?"

Over the past two and a half months, striking actors like George Clooney, Martin Sheen, and Bryan Cranston (among many more) have walked picket lines and publicly supported the labor action. Their concerns include studios' threats to replace them with AI and the lack of residuals they say they are receiving from streaming content.

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