Latest casualty from Sony hack? Actors’ paychecks

Hollywood film stars aren’t going to be pleased with the latest fallout from the devastating Sony Pictures hack.

The studio acknowledged that some actors might have to wait several months to receive checks for past work known as “residuals.”

The news broke when one of the industry’s biggest actor unions, SAG-AFTRA, alerted its members to the delay.

“Sony Pictures Entertainment has informed SAG-AFTRA that, as a consequence of their recent cyberattack, Sony’s payment of certain categories of residuals may be delayed by one quarter,” the union stated in an email.

“Due to this delay, fourth quarter 2014 residuals and first quarter 2015 residuals from Sony may not be posted to your online SAG-AFTRA Residuals Tracker until after June 1, 2015.”

The message, first reported by Deadline Hollywood, comes after a series of humiliations for Sony and its stable of Hollywood stars from the cyber attack.

Hackers exposed secret salary and contract information as well as sensitive communications among Sony officials who insulted Angelina Jolie and other stars.

The attack also led Sony to initially cancel the theatrical release of “The Interview,” a comedy about a fictional plan to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The studio eventually released the film online and in a limited number of independent theaters.

Actors can earn income throughout their lifetimes from residuals, which are tied to the number of showings of a work of film or television.

The news about the delayed checks broke one day after the Academy Awards, Hollywood’s biggest night of the year. The Sony hack was referred to but not mentioned during the ceremony.

—This post was updated at 10:35 a.m.