Yahoo News Selena Gomez Catches Heat for ‘Only Murders’ Instagram Post
The Hollywood actors union SAG-AFTRA has been on strike for over a month, meaning that performers have had to stop promoting their productions until an agreement is reached. Pop star and actress Selena Gomez was vehemently reminded of that fact when she posted about her Hulu show Only Murders in the Building on Instagram, seemingly violating the terms of the strike, which prohibits SAG actors from sharing social media content related to their acting work.
The post in question was a behind-the-scenes video from the set of Only Murders, and while Gomez didn’t speak in the video or encourage viewership in the caption—which read, “Missing and waiting @onlymurdershulu”—she did tag the show’s official Instagram account. Per Variety, the post racked up 1.1. million likes in 15 hours before it was deleted.
It’s not clear whether or not Gomez’s post is a breach of SAG-AFTRA’s rules (the union declined to comment), but commenters swiftly criticized the post nonetheless.
“She is in BIG trouble,” one person wrote. “Possible blacklisting ’cause this is DIRECT VIOLATION of the promotion rules. Yikes.”
“You are still on strike, delete it for your own good!!!” another commenter chimed in.
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Per SAG rules, any actor who violates the terms of the strike “could face discipline” that ranges from a fine to suspension or expulsion from the union. It’s unclear if the “Love You Like a Love Song” singer has been disciplined; SAG-AFTRA declined to comment when reached by The Daily Beast, and Gomez’s rep did not return a request for comment.
On Wednesday, SAG-AFTRA spoke out in defense of actors receiving criticism for attending the Venice Film Festival, explaining in a statement that they are able to do so without violating strike rules due to an interim agreement that permits certain appearances.
Gomez isn’t the only actor who’s caught flack for crossing the picket line, digital or otherwise. In May, prior to the SAG strike, Kim Kardashian crossed a WGA picket line in New York to film the new season of American Horror Story, prompting criticism from strike leaders.
“We understand working actors are required to cross our lines until their contract is up at the end of June,” showrunner Warren Leight told The Daily Beast at the time. “Many of them agonize over that, or send support in other ways. [Kardashian is] obviously in a position where she could either opt out of her episode, or tell the producers she’s not comfortable crossing a line. She chose to cross.”
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