The ongoing Hollywood strikes will mess a lot of things up this year. And here is why:
When they returned to the Venice Film Festival near the end of the pandemic in September 2021, a group of newly immunized, tested, and disguised film critics visited the Lido to watch a stellar lineup of movies, including the sci-fi epic Dune, director Jane Campion’s homoerotic western The Power Of The Dog, and the tense feminist autobiographical tale Happening. At the moment, it appeared like film had successfully weathered the awful storm of the preceding 18 months, and only better times could be on the horizon. However, two years later, as the industry hits the Lido once more starting from today, it is sadly in a state of disarray due to a completely new issue.
Negotiations to end the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike are still going on as of right now; however, both parties are blaming the other for being difficult. The strike has been going on since early May. Hollywood has been brought to its knees by labor issues involving both actors and writers, with production on the majority of its movies and television shows delayed. To make matters worse, on July 14, SAG-AFTRA (the Screen Actors Guild) joined the strike.
The film festivals that make up the autumn season will also feel significantly different as a result of the strikes. The bulk of Hollywood films having their world premieres there won’t have any actors or writers walking the red carpet or doing publicity because of union strike rules. The consequences of this could be profound for some of the more significant Hollywood movies, including David Fincher’s The Killer, starring Michael Fassbender and Tilda Swinton, and Bradley Cooper’s Leonard Bernstein biopic Maestro, in which he co-stars with Carey Mulligan. None of the aforementioned actors will be attending Venice, including Cooper, who, despite being both a director and an actor, will not attend in support of SAG-AFTRA.
A star-free promo trail
The absence of these films’ stars from their promotional material is extremely concerning for everyone involved, as Erik Anderson, editor-in-chief of AwardsWatch, who tracks Hollywood’s award season and forecasts its results, tells BBC Culture: “What is crucial about actors promoting their work first and foremost is visibility. Many viewers simply aren’t aware of new movies and television shows until they’re here in the era of streaming and commercial-free television.
The removal of two extremely famous movies from the autumn schedule is most likely due to this. Last week, it was revealed that Dune: Part Two, starring Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, and Florence Pugh, would be rescheduled from November to March 2024. Prior to that, Luca Guadagnino’s romance drama Challengers, starring Zendaya, has already renounced Venice’s coveted opening night slot and postponed its release to April 2024.
The Venice Film Festival, which is renowned for kicking off the awards season and last year debuted major award winners The Whale, Tár, Blonde, and The Banshees of Inisherin, is in a precarious position right now. With the exception of Challengers, the festival asserts that the strikes had no effect on its schedule. However, the 80th festival is releasing movies with a hazy future, in addition to Maestro and The Killer, as well as new works by Oscar winners Yorgos Lanthimos, Sofia Coppola, Wes Anderson, Michael Mann, and Richard Linklater. Since actors are prohibited from attending award shows due to the SAG-AFTRA strike, Erik Anderson argues that these films would benefit from award attention and that, if a fair resolution isn’t reached by the end of the year, the January shows (Emmys, Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice) might amount to little more than press releases.
What difference does the strikes make
However, not all is lost because red carpet elegance is not completely outlawed as a result of the strikes. One reason is that non-US films are exempt from the strikes, therefore new works by directors like Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Pablo Larran, and Nikolaj Arcel are not subject to the same limitations. Additionally, not all US movie studios are being hit because of temporary agreements between the unions and some US producers. Therefore, not only are studios like A24 and Neon able to continue producing movies, but certain festival-bound titles, like Michael Mann’s Ferrari and Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla, can provide the complete Venetian premiere, complete with press. Stars like Adam Driver, Jessica Chastain, and Mads Mikkelsen will still be spotted in their fancy clothes as a result.
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Even if the strikes finish in time for Hollywood to resume regular operations in time for the Oscars and other major events, the damage that will have been done in the interim may still be seismic, and the repercussions for the studios may go well beyond the rescheduled premiere of Dune: Part Two.