Producers and actors agree to extend talks

ENCINO, Calif., April 24 (UPI) -- Major U.S. producers and screen actors in Encino, Calif., have agreed to continue contract talks until May 2, a joint statement released Thursday said.

There are still major points of disagreement, but eight days of talks have given hope that the Screen Actors Guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers can reach an agreement, Daily Variety reported.

In a statement that ended an eight-day negotiation news blackout, the producers group posted a note on the Internet that said, "we owe it to our entire industry to give the current SAG-AMPTP talks every opportunity to result in an agreement."

The Screen Actors Guild contract expires June 30. The group has repeatedly said it wishes to avoid a strike, the report said.