Jessica Chastain comments on the actors’ tentative strike deal: “I personally think it’s a good deal.”

EXCLUSIVE: Oscar-winning actress Jessica Chastain has endorsed SAG-AFTRA’s tentative agreement with studios to end the nearly four-month-long actors’ strike.

“I’m pleased that our leadership, the SAG leadership, reached an agreement that they believe is fair, equitable and historic in itself,” Chastain told Deadline.

Voting members of the 160,000-member SAG-AFTRA guilds have been voting since November 14 on the ratification of the proposed new three-year contract. Voting lasts until December 5.

Chastain spoke to Deadline on the red carpet of the Moroccan film festival in Marrakech, where she is the president of the jury this year.

She spoke less than 24 hours after SAG-AFTRA released the full text of the proposed agreement. Read Deadline’s coverage and the full Memorandum of Agreement here.

“We are still waiting to see what voters will choose – whether they will ratify the treaty. I looked through it. Personally, I think it’s a good deal, but of course I only have one vote. I also think it matters what everyone thinks. The great thing about voting is that everyone can have a say.”

Chastain ended up becoming the de facto spokesperson for the actors’ strike at the fall festivals over her latest film, Michel Franco’s Memorysecured a provisional SAG-AFTRA contract as an independent production.

This allowed her to appear on the red carpet and at press conferences in Venice, Toronto and San Sebastian, where she spoke several times in favor of the strike.

Chastain told Deadline in Marrakesh that it was a role that came by default and was not the result of a conscious decision.

“I didn’t choose to talk about it publicly like that. It just happened because my film had an interim contract and because so many actors were nervous about speaking out, I ended up being one of the first, and I think in this case if you were one of the first, then you were actually. a big spotlight on yourself,” she said.

Chastain said she contacted SAG-AFTRA leadership before embarking on the film festival tour.

“I did my homework. I spoke with SAG leadership. I asked her, ‘How can I best support this acting community?’ Because SAG is the most important community I’ve ever been a part of. I would never want to do anything against her and just wanted to support her. It was a bit like going public by default, but I was very happy to do everything I could to support.