Hollywood’s Necessity Under Question as Artists and Screenwriters Strike

Members of the Hollywood actors SAG-AFTRA union walk a picket line with screenwriters outside of Paramount Studios on Day 2 of the actors' strike in Los Angeles, Calif., on July 14, 2023. David McNew/Getty Images

Hollywood is on strike. It’s the biggest shutdown in the industry for 63 years with over 150,000 actors joining the screenwriters union to strike over pay and work conditions.

One of the major contentious points is the use of AI which creates the need for an actor to only work one day to have their image scanned. This would then be used throughout the movie or possibly in perpetuity if negotiated.

“If we don’t stand tall right now, we are all going to be in trouble. We are all going to be in jeopardy of being replaced by machines and big business,” said Fran Drescher of the Nanny fame and president of Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA).

SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland confirmed the hazard machines cause, stating at a press conference that actors are facing an “existential threat” because of the rise of AI.

However, it’s not just actors facing replacement by AI. It’s white-collar creatives and screenwriters (although Charlie Brooker had ChatGPT write an episode of “Black Mirror” and said the result was just a resplicing of “Black Mirror” scenes, and there was nothing original about it.)

The strike means that many film and tv sets will be closed indefinitely. So will movie goers survive the shutdown? Do we even need Hollywood?

Could we be spared yet another rendition of Superman, Spiderman or Cat Woman or yet another extension of Star Wars, X Men or the Hunger Games?

A worker wheels equipment past the famous Hollywood sign as preparations continue for the 95th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, on March 8, 2023. J. David Ake/AP Photo

Perhaps the Hollywood strike may mean that independent filmmakers will garnish some recognition for their ability to produce something fresh and with new talent. The lack of Tinseltown talent has never been more obvious than today.

Eighty-year-old Harrison Ford is back in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” 61-year-old Tom Cruise stars in “Mission Impossible 7,” and “Breakout” features 75-year-old Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Then there’s Nicolas Cage at 59, starring in “Lords of War” while John Travolta, Mr. Cage’s senior by ten years, is being promoted in “That’s Amore.” The incredibly young, by comparison, Matthew McConaughey, at 53, is featuring in “Rivals of Amziah King.”

Even Quentin Tarantino has said in his and Roger Avary’s The Video Archives Podcast, “I do feel that 80s cinema is, along with the 50s, the worst era in Hollywood history. Matched only by now, matched only by the current era!”

Audiences Losing Interest

Tinseltown rarely strays from the formulaic, and with movie attendance at a 20-year low and Disney losing $900 million on their last eight releases, perhaps the formula is finally losing its shine.

The film industry is beginning to suffer the type of disruption that led to a reshaping of the music and publishing industries.

Modern-era musicians now depend on streaming services that pay around one to five cents per stream.

Although a decent paycheque can be gained by touring, it’s not so glamorous for every musician that isn’t Taylor Swift.

COVID also put a stop to touring. If there are further lockdowns because of climate change, a musician’s life will be made even more difficult.

While the movie industry also has the streaming services of Netflix and others to get content out to the masses, these companies don’t have the same dollars as the movie houses to market releases globally.

These streaming services have also reshaped an actor’s pay. Wages haven’t kept up with inflation, and royalty payments dependent upon reruns of shows are not a certainty.

Streaming services have also tarnished the star quality of actors.  AI could well sully them further, leaving them with very weak star power and very weak influence. Is this what the powers that be want?

Protagonist Pictures, George Hamilton told Variety Magazine: “We used to treat our movie stars like gods, but the marketing of these streaming movies is so limited that it doesn’t really create stars. Actors aren’t burned into the minds like they once were, and they don’t have this larger-than-life image any longer.”

The strike also means that actors in Hollywood are not allowed to attend red-carpet movie launches or even post promotions on their socials—although the Barbie movie seems to have snuck in just before the ban.

The Show Goes On Elsewhere

Acting jobs are incredibly sought after and will no doubt become more so as actors could head overseas to places like Mumbai’s Bollywood or onto stages in the West End.

On Broadway, the show must also go on. Actors Equity struck a bargain with the Broadway League in January with a new touring agreement confirmed. This offered better salaries, new sick pay arrangements, and producer-paid housing options.

Perhaps we may see some big names flocking to the West End and Broadway. Musicals are having their moment in London, reaching audiences of over nine million.

Audiences for London plays are also increasing, although are roughly about half the size of musicals, with over four million in attendance in 2019.

SAG has gone on strike many times in the past, with the first in 1952 and the last before this one in 2000, which went on for six months. Hollywood eventually reached an agreement.

While Steven Spielberg has said, “I’m a firm believer that movie theatres need to be around forever,” perhaps with streaming services and potential lockdowns, this need may well disappear.