WGA/SAGAFTRA Strike Discussion Thread | SAG Ratifies Contract

[Jonwo]

19 minutes ago, MysteryMovieMogul said:

Regarding AI, I just don't understand why someone doesn't use AI in a way that makes executives look bad. Deepfake Iger. Deepfake Zaslav. That's all someone has to do before regulations happen.

 

And you call it parody to avoid getting sued.

I suspect the lawyers wouldn't agree.

[BK007]

2 hours ago, MysteryMovieMogul said:

Execs need to take far more than a 25% pay cut.

Americans are too propagandised to worship capitalism for that to happen. 

 

The world is already burning due to it and yet the majority still are wedded to it - not just ignorant blowhard conservatives. 

[The Wild Eric]

@Plain Old Tele how does this work? The article mentions that it’s easier for independent productions to get these waivers and exemptions, but this still seems weird.

[Jonwo]

Neither are in production but I assume Netflix series like The Crown and Heartstopper would come under Equity contracts since they're UK based shows with mostly British casts. 

 

 

[Dementeleus]

1 hour ago, Eric Stickell said:

@Plain Old Tele how does this work? The article mentions that it’s easier for independent productions to get these waivers and exemptions, but this still seems weird.

As I understand it, independent productions who aren’t AMPTP signatories can get a waiver if they agree to SAG’s new contract stipulations.

[DInky]

 

[filmlover]

Posted this in the Challengers thread but it's part of a bigger article about the strike so I'll share it here too:

 

 

[Cappoedameron]

2 hours ago, Eric Stickell said:

@Plain Old Tele how does this work? The article mentions that it’s easier for independent productions to get these waivers and exemptions, but this still seems weird.

I mean no one watches the show and it's being purchased by the CW's new right wing owner, so it's probably gonna be a cringe as fuck show nobody is going to watch but the nutjobs on basic cable on the cheap CW

 

Also I'd bet money that a majority of this cast isn't even in the union.

Edited July 17, 2023 by Cappoedameron

[AJG]

11 minutes ago, Cappoedameron said:

I mean no one watches the show and it's being purchased by the CW's new right wing owner, so it's probably gonna be a cringe as fuck show nobody is going to watch but the nutjobs on basic cable on the cheap CW

 

Also I'd bet money that a majority of this cast isn't even in the union.

 

The Chosen is actually quite popular. Very big with Christians. Also the imdb rating for that show is hilarious. 

[filmlover]

 

[Jonwo]

I wonder what happens to actors who are also directors? If they have to do promo for a film they've directed but also starring in, they can't exactly not do it. I'm thinking Kenneth Branagh who directed and starred in A Haunting in Venice.

[filmlover]

1 minute ago, Jonwo said:

I wonder what happens to actors who are also directors? If they have to do promo for a film they've directed but also starring in, they can't exactly not do it. I'm thinking Kenneth Branagh who directed and starred in A Haunting in Venice.

Gerwig and Nolan have been doing promo for their impending hits that they both wrote and directed only as directors (Noah Baumbach has skipped all Barbie press as a co-writer on the movie because of the WGA strike), so it's not entirely impossible, but it's also going to limit the number of questions they can be asked. I was thinking earlier that Netflix could send BCoop out to the festivals for Maestro even if no one else from the movie is allowed to attend since he wore four different hats on it (actor, director, writer, producer), but given that he's a superstar and this is a big Oscar vehicle for him, it's going to be odd if he can only answer questions about directing the movie while avoiding ones about the acting process on it since the two are linked in this case. It's a conundrum that the studios are going to have play by year and consult with the directors and producers on about what they want to do with these movies.

[Jonwo]

2 minutes ago, filmlover said:

Gerwig and Nolan have been doing promo for their impending hits that they both wrote and directed only as directors (Noah Baumbach has skipped all Barbie press as a co-writer on the movie because of the WGA strike), so it's not entirely impossible, but it's also going to limit the number of questions they can be asked. I was thinking earlier that Netflix could send BCoop out to the festivals for Maestro even if no one else from the movie is allowed to attend since he wore four different hats on it (actor, director, writer, producer), but given that he's a superstar and this is a big Oscar vehicle for him, it's going to be odd if he can only answer questions about directing the movie while avoiding ones about the acting process on it since the two are linked in this case. It's a conundrum that the studios are going to have play by year and consult with the directors and producers on about what they want to do with these movies.

With Branagh in particular, you could word the questions in a way so he describes the process of working with everyone but agree it's a headache for everyone involved. 

 

 

[Cappoedameron]

29 minutes ago, AJG said:

 

The Chosen is actually quite popular. Very big with Christians. Also the imdb rating for that show is hilarious. 

Yeah okay, nobody aside from Christians cares about the show and it shows the fact it has literally zero presence anywhere in the media landscape. The only publicity it's ever received is when it was purchased by the new right wing homophobic racist owner of the CW.

[SchumacherFTW]

3 minutes ago, Cappoedameron said:

Yeah okay, nobody aside from Christians cares about the show and it shows the fact it has literally zero presence anywhere in the media landscape. The only publicity it's ever received is when it was purchased by the new right wing homophobic racist owner of the CW.

Given its aimed at Christians, it's working on it's demo, stop being a numpty. 

[filmlover]

Yeah, The Chosen is really popular in certain, albeit very niche circles. There's a reason they tested the waters of releasing some episodes of the show in movie theaters. Might even try that again depending on how long the strike lasts and how desperate for content theaters might be lol.

 

Not that I suspect they will be desperate for content in the near future since the expected heavy-hitters (Dune, Marvels, Hunger Games, Wish, etc.) are all likely staying where they are due to timed licensing deals and product launches that would be a real pain trying to push back like the worst of the COVID delays were and the potential that it might be for naught if the strike is over in the early fall despite speculation it'll last until winter cause never say never.

[BoxOfficeFangrl]

1 hour ago, filmlover said:

Gerwig and Nolan have been doing promo for their impending hits that they both wrote and directed only as directors (Noah Baumbach has skipped all Barbie press as a co-writer on the movie because of the WGA strike), so it's not entirely impossible, but it's also going to limit the number of questions they can be asked. I was thinking earlier that Netflix could send BCoop out to the festivals for Maestro even if no one else from the movie is allowed to attend since he wore four different hats on it (actor, director, writer, producer), but given that he's a superstar and this is a big Oscar vehicle for him, it's going to be odd if he can only answer questions about directing the movie while avoiding ones about the acting process on it since the two are linked in this case. It's a conundrum that the studios are going to have play by year and consult with the directors and producers on about what they want to do with these movies.

Cooper had a "difficult" interview with the New York Times during the promo for A Star Is Born, when the industry wasn't even on strike. I think a lot of the SAG rank and file would see him as a scab this time, even if the promo was technically allowed. That wouldn't help the Oscar votes. And if he sits out the PR tour for Maestro, then he also gets to dodge  questions about the casting/makeup debates that will happen.

 

I can't remember if Nolan specifically talked about the Oppenheimer script being in the first person in these recent interviews, but I think he did? The WGA strike has been going on since May. There seemed to be more Twitter grumbling about Gerwig doing promo vs Nolan, surprise surprise.

 

 

 

50 minutes ago, Cappoedameron said:

Yeah okay, nobody aside from Christians cares about the show and it shows the fact it has literally zero presence anywhere in the media landscape. The only publicity it's ever received is when it was purchased by the new right wing homophobic racist owner of the CW.

Yellowstone and Succession premiered in the same month; you'd never know it if you used "cultural conversation" as a guide to actual popularity. It took about 3 seasons for the tastemakers who write about TV to even notice and acknowledge Yellowstone's massive reach. 

 

Not to say that The Chosen is as big Yellowstone but they've done limited theatrical releases of some episodes. It wasn't Passion of the Christ money, but several Best Picture nominees in recent years made less than Christmas with the Chosen.

 

It's not like CW survived due to its mass appeal. However going with a Jesus series is quite the 180 from their recent slate.

[FunkMiller]

1 hour ago, Cappoedameron said:

Yeah okay, nobody aside from Christians cares about the show and it shows the fact it has literally zero presence anywhere in the media landscape. The only publicity it's ever received is when it was purchased by the new right wing homophobic racist owner of the CW.

 

America is stuffed to the bloody gills with Christians, so that's a lot of people who do care about it. 

[filmlover]

20 minutes ago, BoxOfficeFangrl said:

Cooper had a "difficult" interview with the New York Times during the promo for A Star Is Born, when the industry wasn't even on strike. I think a lot of the SAG rank and file would see him as a scab this time, even if the promo was technically allowed. That wouldn't help the Oscar votes. And if he sits out the PR tour for Maestro, then he also gets to dodge  questions about the casting/makeup debates that will happen.

If the strike is still ongoing with no end in sight by September I wouldn't be surprised if BCoop was able to twist Netflix's arm into delaying it a year (despite how much they claim they are fine with merely providing content for subscribers, they remain hungry for Oscar glory). Given that early details and photos from Maestro make it appear as if he and Carey Mulligan are a package deal (the movie is apparently just as much about Bernstein's complicated marriage as it is about his career), it already would be odd if he were doing promo for it in any capacity while she was AWOL.

Edited July 17, 2023 by filmlover

[AJG]

6 minutes ago, FunkMiller said:

 

America is stuffed to the bloody gills with Christians, so that's a lot of people who do care about it. 

 

Big with UK Christians too. Its the only modern show my aunt watches.