A group of emerging talents from shows like “Obsession,” “The Pitt,” and “Euphoria” convened on Thursday to discuss the influence of Gen Z on entertainment and their experiences in Hollywood. This gathering was part of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s first-ever First Act: Summer Soiree event.
The panel featured Patrick Ball (“The Pitt”), Megan Lawless (“Obsession”), Tonatiuh (“Kiss of the Spider Woman”), Caitlin Reilly (“Hacks”), Darrell Britt-Gibson (“Euphoria”), and Courtney Taylor (“Ballard”). They shared their personal career journeys and insights with an audience of young performers at the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Meryl Streep Center for Performing Artists in Los Angeles.
This discussion followed the success of unexpected box office hits like Curry Barker’s “Obsession,” which has captured the growing interest of Gen Z, today’s most active moviegoers.
“We are in this state where it feels kind of exciting because I think we’re starting to see a lot of original stories again, which I think we are so starved for,” Taylor said during the panel moderated by Rochelle Rose, SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s national director of performers programs. “Stuff like ‘I Love Boosters,’ ‘Backrooms,’ ‘Obsession,’ we are so hungry for something new. We’re starting to see that and I think the opportunity that we have there is to lean on that and lean on every story.”
Lawless, who portrays Sarah in “Obsession,” shared that she had been anticipating this moment since she was 13. “This is just my dream come true. For me, I finally met the moment where I feel like people want to work with me and are choosing me, and there is a new thing — I have choice now,” she said. “I’ve been very involved with my team, I talk to them constantly. Most everything, if I can make it, like press-related, I say yes to. This moment’s not going to last forever.”
Britt-Gibson, who gained career options after securing a recurring role on Season 4 of HBO’s “The Wire,” emphasized a deliberate approach to his career choices.
“I have sacrificed a lot of money in this industry in terms of projects that I’ve said no to,” he said. “I always think about, ‘Will I be able to sit my future children down and show them something and say I’m proud of it, not that it made this amount of money, not that this many people saw it?’”
Ball, who received an Actor Award as part of HBO Max’s ensemble cast for “The Pitt,” shared his unique journey. He spent 15 years in theater before his role as Dr. Frank Langdon, unlike other panelists who followed more conventional paths through film and television.
“What you’re seeing when you see Season 1 of ‘The Pitt’ is you’re watching an educational process for me. You’re figuring out how cameras work, how a set works,” Ball said. “You just got to do, there’s no way to prepare for it. And I’m honestly not the best at it.”
Towards the end of the panel, Rose introduced the topic of AI, a contentious issue in the industry.
Reilly urged her peers to oppose AI: “Everyone keeps telling us that AI is coming for us, it’s happening whether we like it or not. The truth of the matter is that’s a lie. These corporations and billionaires are trying to shove it into our lives, and if we band together and say no, then we can push back. You don’t need to engage with it, you have autonomy. There is community here.”
On the matter of AI, Tonatiuh offered practical guidance.
“You need to learn how to read a contract, quickly, and get a good lawyer, quickly,” he said when it comes to actors signing away their likeness. “It’s really important that you’re not just an artist, you are running a business. And you cannot sign away by accidentally reading it. Your agent is not going to watch your back, your manager is not going to watch your back. They are looking at the dollar because they want the percent. You need to watch your back.”
(Pictured top: Megan Lawless, Darrell Britt-Gibson, Caitlin Reilly and Tonatiuh at SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s First Act: Summer Soiree event on June 18)
