SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher Defends Mingling with Kim Kardashian Amid Contract Negotiations, Says It Was 'Work'

Fran Drescher is speaking out in response to the controversy surrounding her recent trip to Italy and meetup with Kim Kardashian.

The beloved The Nanny actress is also the president of SAG-AFTRA, the union that represents actors, radio personalities, and more.

This past weekend, Fran was in Italy to attend the Dolce&Gabbana show while SAG-AFTRA was in last-minute contract negotiations with the major studios. A deal was never reached and now the actors are going on strike.

Fran was criticized for attending a fashion event abroad instead of being at the contract negotiations in Los Angeles. She was also blasted for hanging out with Kim, who had been slammed by actors for crossing the WGA picket line to film American Horror Story.

Head inside to find out what Fran Drescher said…

While appearing at a press conference on Thursday (July 13), Fran was asked about the “selfie” she snapped with Kim.

“That wasn’t a selfie!” she responded. She was indeed correct as the photo was taken by someone else.

SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director and chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland chimed in and said, “I want to say it’s outrageous that they would do that. What Fran was doing, was Fran was working. Which is what our members do. And for these employers to cynically try to turn our members against Fran, because she was doing a job that she was under contract to do, while by the way, she was zooming into our negotiations after-work hours, working 18 hours or more a day. It is outrageous, it is wrong, it’s despicable and they should be ashamed of it.”

Fran continued, “I appreciate that. I’m a brand ambassador for a fashion company and so is Kim. I had only met Kim seconds before that publicity picture was taken. It had nothing to do with being at a party or having fun.”

“It was absolute work. I was in hair and make-up three hours a day, walking in heels on cobblestones, doing things like that which is work –not fun,” Fran added. “I’m sure Kim would have rather have been at her home in Malibu with her children, too. But we work, that’s what we do.”

Fran explained what she was doing in Italy.

“At 10:30 at night, I would leave the event, go to my hotel room, and I’d call into the zoom. And when I couldn’t get through to them because I was on a plane, I was texting with them constantly throughout the plane ride. I worked around the clock in three different time zones because my parents live in Florida, though I keep asking them to move here and I managed their well-being as well,” she said. “I think that all of the people standing behind me, stand behind me!”

Actors are no longer allowed to make press appearances to promote their projects while the union is on strike. There’s a whole list of rules that actors must follow!