It looks like the Hollywood actors’ strike is over – here’s what’s happening now | Arts and arts news

Production of films and television shows is expected to begin moments after the strike ends. But while the deal means work can now resume, it will take some time for the industry to return to normal after such a long delay – and viewers may continue to feel the effects for months.

After an industry-wide shutdown that lasted for 118 days, it seems like the time has finally come to call “action!” In Hollywood again.

SAG-AFTRA It has now agreed to a “principle deal” with Hollywood studio bosseswith the sit-in sites now officially closed.

The announcement comes after the Writers Guild of America (WGA) approved a deal in September After a separate writers’ strike that lasted 148 days.

There are a few steps to take before the deal becomes official, as the SAG-AFTRA National Board is scheduled to review the agreement before publishing details and holding a vote for the union’s full membership.

However, when the striking screenwriters reached their agreement in September, writing work was allowed to resume before full ratification of the contract was completed.

As Hollywood prepares to get back to work, here’s what to expect.

Film and television production

Production of films and television shows is expected to begin moments after the strike ends. But although the agreement means business can now resume, don’t expect a wave of shows and films to appear immediately – after a delay of several months, it will take some time for the industry to return to normal, and viewers may continue to watch. You feel the effects for months, if not years.

Long-awaited films, including Deadpool 3, starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman, and Ridley Scott’s Gladiator sequel, are likely to be among the first to resume production.

Working on the fifth season of the hit 1980s sci-fi series Weird things It has also been put on pause, and the cast of Wicked, which includes Ariana Grande and Jonathan Bailey, was days away from completing the film before the announcement.

Production has also been suspended on upcoming seasons of other hit shows, including The Handmaid’s Tale and The Last Of Us.

The resolution of the writers’ strike has allowed script work to resume on shows like Abbott Elementary, The White Lotus, and Yellowjackets — and that head start may help these productions return to the air sooner once their stars are ready to work.

Television moves faster than film. Once the pre-production phase of films is over, there is still a long editing and promotion process.

In the final weeks before the decision was announced, it was announced that more shows and films would be postponed – Kevin Costner’s final episodes of Yellowstone will not air until November 2024, and The upcoming Mission: Impossible movie has also been postponed.

Red carpet magic

It’s not just work on the production itself that has been put on hold, but members of SAG-AFTRA, which represents about 160,000 workers in the industry, have also been banned from announcing any of their upcoming projects.

This means that for months, film and TV premieres have been canceled, or gone ahead without their stars, and you’ll see very few actors giving interviews about their acting work. The actors were so hit Beware of dressing up as famous movie or TV characters on Halloween.

The long-awaited premiere of Christopher Nolan’s epic Oppenheimer was scheduled for July 14, the day the actors’ strike was announced – forcing out stars including Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt and Matt Damon. To walk the red carpet.

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Now, promotions can go ahead as planned — so expect to see a flurry of red carpet announcements as studios rush to show off their stars again.

The strike has also affected international film festivals such as Venice and Toronto – and during the London Film Festival in October, director Martin Scorsese said he was “disappointed” by the stars of his latest film, Killers Of The Flower Moon, including Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert D. Nero, could not attend.

The end of the strike means that festivals such as Sundance, Berlin and Cannes can go ahead as planned at the beginning of 2024.

Some projects have been granted exemptions, such as Michael Mann’s upcoming racing drama Ferrari, which stars Adam Driver and Patrick Dempsey were able to attend the Venice Film Festival — and also allowed Dempsey to give an interview to People magazine. When he was named the sexiest man alive.

Does this affect the Oscars or other award shows?

The Emmy Awards ceremony, usually held in September, was canceled due to the strikes. A new date has been set for January 15, and it looks like the ceremony will now be able to go ahead on that date.

Since most award ceremonies take place between January and April, events including the big one – the Oscars – can now go ahead as planned without any changes.

What does the deal mean?

SAG-AFTRA says the deal is worth more than $1 billion and includes compensation increases, consent protections for the use of artificial intelligence and actors’ looks, and a “live broadcast participation bonus.”

The Association of Motion Picture and Television Producers says the “tentative agreement represents a new paradigm,” and that the studios are offering actors “the largest contract gains in the association’s history, including the largest minimum wage increase in the United States.” the past forty years.

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, executive director and chief negotiator for SAG-AFTRA, says the gains made the strike worthwhile.

What then?

Well… maybe it’s not over yet. In fact, there could be another strike — this time by video game artists. Negotiations on this contract are ongoing, but the closing has been approved.

Actors who work in video games range from voice artists to stunt performers, and like SAG-AFTRA members, they have expressed concerns about the use of artificial intelligence in their industry.

Studios will also negotiate with camera workers and their union, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, in 2024. IATSE members work in everything from building sets to lighting and creating effects, and are therefore important to film and television productions. They have already been hit hard by the shutdown, with some members joining the picket lines in the writers’ and actors’ strike.

Other sectors of the industry moved to unionize as strikes by actors and writers continued. Some reality TV workers are calling for a union, while visual effects artists working on Marvel films voted to join IATSE.

So, while Hollywood loves a happy ending, there may be a sequel coming.