Erika Harlacher-Stone left comments on her TikTok account hinting at her return as Venti in Genshin Impact.
With Genshin Impact’s Version 5.6 debuting this 7 May, it was revealed during the preview livestream that the main Archon Quest will bring players back to Mondstadt for major developments to the region’s storyline.
However, with several English voice actors for the game refusing to work due to the alleged lack of AI protections, fans quickly questioned Erika Harlacher-Stone, the voice actor for Mondstadt’s Archon Venti, about whether she would be returning for Version 5.6–especially since Venti will feature prominently in the Archon Quest.
Sadly, Harlacher-Stone confirmed that she won't be returning to Version 5.6. However, she also revealed that it wasn't by choice.
“SAG has been sending threatening letters”: Harlacher-Stone reveals SAG issues
Harlacher-Stone replied to a number of comments on her TikTok account questioning her position in the collective work refusal and if she’ll ever return to Genshin Impact’s future versions. In screenshots below, she reveals the state of her situation as Venti's voice actor, as well as the influence of SAG-AFTRA on her work:
Harlacher-Stone alleged that the SAG-AFTRA union has been sending “threatening letters” regarding work on Genshin Impact, though the contents of these letters have not been revealed. Based on her statement, it can be assumed that Harlacher-Stone has been in communication with the union in hopes of returning to the game, but so far has only received “rude” replies.
Harlacher-Stone thanked her fans for the support, yet also revealed that the strike wasn't voted on by everyone. We can construe that the collective work refusal, which Zieja also affirmed, did not undergo clear discussions before being implemented. In a different comment, Harlacher-Stone also revealed that if it had been her choice, she “would've been voicing the whole time”.
The lack of clear discussions about the collective work refusal, which encompasses the entirety of HoYoverse's game catalogue, was also confirmed by Honkai: Star Rail's Corey Landis, who voices the character Welt, through a Reddit post. Landis stated that he was unaware of the strike taking place until someone had informed him.
Harlacher-Stone assured her fans that she will be covering everything she had missed due to the work refusal. She additionally gave some more context in regards to the work refusal, stating that “we got massively screwed over”, and that she wanted to get back to work.
Although Harlacher-Stone did not reveal any more details regarding the collective work refusal and the involvement of SAG-AFTRA during this controversy, her statements has led to fans once again questioning the motives of the SAG-AFTRA union when it comes to Genshin Impact and other HoYoverse titles.
Paimon VA weighs in on Harlacher-Stone's statements
It's no secret that Corina Boettger, who continues to work on Genshin Impact as Paimon's voice actor throughout the collective work refusal, has been incredibly vocal of their support to SAG-AFTRA on their social media accounts in regards to the strike controversy. On a comment made through their BlueSky account, Boettger seemed to blast Harlacher-Stone's statements, stating that Harlacher-Stone is not “fi-core” and therefore “knew the risks”.
However this begs the question: why is SAG-AFTRA allegedly sending “threatening letters” when Genshin Impact isn't a struck game, and the collective work refusal, according to Joe Zieja's video (VA for Wriothesly), was not sanctioned by the union?
Boettger's comment seemed to allude to the union's Global Rule One, which, according to the official SAG-AFTRA website, is a rule that states:
No member shall render any services or make an agreement to perform services for any employer who has not executed a basic minimum agreement with the union, which is in full force and effect, in any jurisdiction in which there is a SAG-AFTRA national collective bargaining agreement in place. This provision applies worldwide.
But to reiterate: the strike against Genshin Impact is not a formal strike sanctioned by the union (hence it being called a collective work refusal). Zieja himself confirmed through his video that any actor, union or non-union, is free to disregard the collective effort at any time with no penalty. So, why is it that SAG-AFTRA is now allegedly enforcing Global Rule One?
There are more questions than answers, and it looks like this issue is far from over.
