Studio bosses fear film crews will be next to go on strike

With actors still striking concerns among executives are now sharply focused on film crews.

Margot Robbie on the SAG-AFTRA picket line. Picture: Splash/Shuttershock

News that Hollywood writers had reached an agreement to end their months-long strike was met with relief across the film and television industry.

With actors still striking, however, concerns among executives are now sharply focused on film crews, including camera operators, make-up artists, lighting technicians and editors – whose contracts with the studios are up for renewal in July.

Months of tense negotiations, scheduling chaos and, potentially, another destructive walkout are now expected even if the SAG-AFTRA actors’ union can reach a deal before November. A-list actors and directors have packed schedules that will have to be rearranged for productions to resume, and, as with the return to work from Covid, crews will be in high demand.

This will allow their union, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, to demand significant gains, partly to recoup the losses workers have sustained during the stoppage. If the union, whose members have stood side-by-side with the writers and actors, cannot reach an agreement with studios then Hollywood could be in for another strike.

Michael Niederman, a professor in cinema and television arts at Columbia College Chicago, hopes catastrophe can be averted. “This was not an easy period for anybody,” he said. “At this point I think everybody’s interested in getting back to work.”

He said the agreement with writers was “absolutely not” perfect, but added: “Did they push some of this stuff down the road? Absolutely.”

He added: “Everybody else whose contracts come up over the next six months to a year has an interest in keeping working after this very, very painful stretch for not just writers, not just actors, but everyone involved in the film and TV production world, which, people often forget, is much, much huger than they imagine.”

The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees previously threatened to strike the last time the contract was up for negotiation, in 2021. At the time their complaints included claims of being forced to work excessive hours with too few breaks, and a walkout was only averted at the 11th hour after the studios made a series of concessions.

Next time, the impact of artificial intelligence will likely be a key flashpoint, as it has also been with the actors and writers. The union has already released a set of “core principles” for the application of AI and machine learning in its members’ work.

Actors Ellen Barkin and Oscar Isaac join SAG-AFTRA and WGA members on strike on September 14, 2023 in New York City. Picture: John Nacion/Getty Images

Once the actors get back to work Hollywood must deal with the difficulty of trying to kickstart production, a tough task that will result in rival studios competing for stars and crews.

A studio executive told the Hollywood Reporter: “You’ve got the entire industry starting up again. Everybody’s going to be hitting the starting line with the same needs. There will be issues with cast availabilities, crews, getting stages, equipment.”

Fans have already felt the effects of the walkouts. Popular television series such as Netflix’s Stranger Things have stopped production, delaying long-awaited new episodes. Sir Ridley Scott’s Gladiator sequel has also been left in limbo and big releases have been delayed because the actors’ strike has barred stars from doing publicity work.

Dune 2, one of the year’s most keenly awaited releases, will arrive in March, four months late.

Kraven the Hunter, Sony’s Spider-Man spin-off, was supposed to arrive in cinemas next month but has been postponed to next August. and Dune 2, one of the year’s most keenly awaited releases, will arrive in March, four months late.

For projects that are not completed, Niederman fears some will suffer a drop in quality from being rushed through pre-production. Despite the mounting problems facing Hollywood, Niederman is hopeful that “America’s last great export” can endure.

“This strike didn’t affect just the writers and the actors,” he said. “There were families whose lives depend on catering that were adversely affected, families whose lives depend on someone who drives a truck. This was a rough stretch. Hopefully we can be smarter about it going forward.”