Interview: X-Men '97 Voice Actor Jennifer Hale on AI

Video game voice actors are on strike after a year of negotiations with video game publishers.

The main sticking point is protection against the use of generative AI technologies.

Jennifer Hale , known as Commander Shepard in the Mass Effect series, Ashe in Overwatch 2, and Jean Grey in X-Men ’97, is leading the charge in union talks.

Hale: "All of us performers were just the canary in the coal mine".

A strike would signal to the average person that no voice actors are working on any upcoming video game.

But plenty of games are being produced with union actors while on strike.

Video game and animation voice-over work under a block rate where actors earn between $900 and $1,000 per session.

Residuals for actors are significantly smaller than they ever were before.

The National Association of Voice Actors is lobbying Congress for laws to stop the use of AI in video game games.

Actors want to be able to consent and say, "Yes, you have my permission [to use my voice]” Hale also encourages fans to not support AI -generated content in their digital lives.