Is Hollywood shutting down? Why actors joined writers on strike

Hollywood actors are going on strike. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) has joined the Writers Guild of America on the picket lines. The development comes after SAG-AFTRA – Hollywood’s largest union which represents 160,000 film and television actors – authorised a strike after negotiations with studios broke down. But what does this mean exactly? Let’s take a closer look: Blockbuster films, TV shows on hold According to The Guardian, shooting for several Hollywood blockbusters in production including the Ridley Scott-helmed Gladiator sequel underway in Morocco and Malta, Tom Cruise’s Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part II, will be delayed. Production on Wonder Woman 3, Ghostbusters 4, Mufasa: The Lion King and the next Avatar movies will also be paused, as per IMDB. According to Deadline, shooting for TV shows such Andor and Industry are also likely to be affected. But Variety reported that HBO’s House of the Dragon has continued filming despite the strike being called.

This is because the show is made up of mostly British actors working under the local union Equity.

Though the union has expressed support for its US brethren, Equity warned its 47,000 members it is not legally allowed to strike in solidarity with the SAG-AFTRA under British laws. Variety quoted Equity as saying in a statement, “A performer joining the strike (or refusing to cross a picket line) in the U.K. will have no protection against being dismissed or sued for breach of contract by the producer or the engager. Likewise, if Equity encourages anyone to join the strike or not cross a picket line, Equity itself will be acting unlawfully and hence liable for damages or an injunction.” The strike rules also prevent actors from making personal appearances or promoting their work on podcasts or at premieres. Emily Blunt, Cillian Murphy and Matt Damon last night walked off the London premiere of their high-profile blockbuster Oppenheimer, directed by Christopher Nolan, in a show of solidarity. The event was moved up an hour to make sure the cast could attend. “It looks like it’s time to take down the MASKS. And pick up the SIGNS,” Oscar-winner Jamie Lee Curtis said in an Instagram post with a photo of the tragic and comic masks that represent acting. Ahead of the strike, big names like Jennifer Lawrence, Bob Odenkirk, Mark Ruffalo, Glenn Close and Meryl Streep had warned they are prepared to walk out if a deal isn’t reached with Hollywood’s largest union. [caption id=“attachment_12867542” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] The SAG-AFTRA building is pictured following a press conference announcing a strike by The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists on Thursday, AP[/caption] Actors are also barred from doing any production work including auditions, readings, rehearsals or voiceovers along with actual shooting. While international shoots technically can continue, the stoppage among US-based writers and performers is likely to have a drag on those too. The strike has also cast a shadow over the upcoming 75th Emmy Awards, whose nominations were announced a day earlier. Union rules prevent actors from doing any interviews or promotions around the awards, and they may not appear at the ceremony. Some production work not involving SAG-AFTRA performers can proceed, such as location scouting or some post-production editing. But the loss of actors, who will also not promote their films or TV shows while on strike, will put more pressure on media companies to find a resolution. What happens next? No one is quite sure whether SAG-AFTRA joining the Writers Guild will result in the conflict being resolved quickly or cause it to drag along interminably. Hollywood has not faced simultaneous strikes since 1960, when members of the WGA and the Screen Actors Guild both walked off the job in a fight over residuals from films sold to TV networks. Actors say the rise of the streaming era has made it harder to earn their livelihoods, especially for the many thousands of SAG-AFTRA members who are not household names.

“This is a sea-change negotiation,” media expert David Mumpower told CNN.

“And if they get it wrong now, they’re going to have it wrong for decades.” “You have to make $26,000 a year to qualify for your health insurance and there are a lot of people who get across that threshold through their residual payments,” Damon said at a promotional event held for Oppenheimer on Wednesday. “There’s money being made and it needs to be allocated in a way that takes care of people who are on the margins."“This is a sea-change negotiation,” media expert David Mumpower told CNN. “And if they get it wrong now, they’re going to have it wrong for decades.” Inside Hollywood, many are on the verge of panic. “Everybody’s really nervous because there’s going to be no cash flow — they won’t be making anything,” a top talent agent told Insider. Entertainment lawyer Jonathan Handel, who previously worked for the Writers Guild, predicted a long, painful haul. “There is so much at stake,” Handel told Insider. “I don’t think that filmed entertainment has seen a more rapid change in such a short period of time than since the end of World War II.” Handel added that the strike “could well go into the end of the year.” But Paul Hardart, director of the Entertainment, Media and Technology Program at NYU’s Stern School of Business, told Business Insider SAG striking ‘expedites things’. “I think you’ll see pressure from external forces — whether it’s the governor of California, the president of the United States — moving this along.” “At some point, even the streamers run out of content and the companies just have to make a deal,” Handel told Insider. “The industry just can’t continue struck.” ‘Insulting and disrespectful’ But sides seem to have dug in their heels. SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher, who shot to fame for the TV show The Nanny made a fiery speech calling the studios’ responses to actors’ concerns “insulting and disrespectful.” “I am shocked by the way the people that we have been in business with are treating us,” Drescher said. “I cannot believe it, quite frankly, how far apart we are on so many things, how they plead poverty that they’re losing money left and right when giving hundreds of millions to their CEOs. It is disgusting.” [caption id=“attachment_12867552” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher in a fiery speech slammed the studios. AP[/caption] “At a moment when streaming and AI and digital was so prevalent, it has disemboweled the industry that we once knew,” Drescher said, drawing applause from her fellow union leaders. “When I did ‘The Nanny’ everybody was part of the gravy train. Now it’s a vacuum.” “Employers make Wall Street and greed their priority and they forget about the essential contributors that make the machine run,” Drescher said.

“It is disgusting. Shame on them. They stand on the wrong side of history.”

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The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents employers including Disney, Netflix, Amazon and others, claimed it presented a generous deal that included the biggest bump in minimum pay in 35 years, higher caps on pension and health contributions, and “a groundbreaking AI proposal that protects actors’ digital likenesses.” “A strike is certainly not the outcome we hoped for as studios cannot operate without the performers that bring our TV shows and films to life,” the group said in a statement. “The Union has regrettably chosen a path that will lead to financial hardship for countless thousands of people who depend on the industry.” Meanwhile, Disney CEO Bob Iger, speaking from a gathering of media and tech moguls at a resort in Idaho, told CNBC on Thursday that the writers’ and actors’ unions had unrealistic expectations. “It’s very disturbing to me,” Iger said, noting the entertainment industry’s ongoing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. “This is the worst time in the world to add to that disruption.” The WGA’s work stoppage has rippled throughout California and beyond, hitting caterers, prop suppliers and others who rely on Hollywood productions for business. The economic damage is expected to spread after actors join the picket lines on Friday. Broadcast networks have already announced fall schedules heavy with reality shows, which are not affected by the strikes. With inputs from agencies