Hollywood rejects actors' demands

Minnie Driver was among actors who supported the writers' strike

Major Hollywood studios have said they will not accept pay rises demanded by actors, raising fears of a strike.

A statement released by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers said "significant gaps" remain between the two sides after 13 days of talks.

It said it "was not willing to accept" requests to double the payments actors receive from DVD sales and to increase fees paid for work distributed online.

The Screen Actors Guild said it was not seeking agreement on all its demands.

In a statement to its members, it said: "We are not surprised that the employers dispute the economic hardships actors are facing. You know better."

But the guild refused to comment further on negotiations, saying: "We will not negotiate this contract in the press."

But the producers' body, however, issued a point-by-point rebuttal of recent statements the guild has made to its members.

It rejected calls to increase payments for DVD sales, saying that the market was no longer growing, and denied claims that actors' pay was on the decline.

Both sides still hope to reach an agreement before the actors' current contract runs out on 30 June, in order to avoid the prospect of a walkout.

The 100-day writers' strike, which brought Hollywood to a standstill earlier this year, is thought to have caused an estimated $2.5 billion (£1.26bn) in economic losses in the Los Angeles area, reported the Associated Press.