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How Will The Writers Guild Strike Affect The Film Industry?

by Kathryn Durfee
12/19/2007

So now that we probably won't have anything to watch on TV come January, what can we expect to see at the multiplex? The WGA strike effects movies, too, but to what extent? Since the production period for a feature-length movie is much longer for that of a television show, effects of the strike may not be seen until late 2008 or even early 2009. Most films scheduled to be released in the spring are already in-production with finished scripts. A summer of bad movies wouldn't be anything new, but what about the fall?

This strike has affected not only production here in the U.S. but internationally as well. The largest studios in Europe are facing a season without American productions spending money to film in their countries. The U.K. fears the writer's strike will cause a ripple effect that could potentially be disasterous. Work is being done to replace films that were planning to shoot abroad, but nothing can assure a profit recovery. The most problematic project is currently Angels & Demons, Ron Howard's prequel to The Da Vinci Code, because it was set to shoot in multiple countries. Great Britain has been reassured by reports that the next installment of the Bond series will begin principal photography without delay. So, we may not see any of our stars running Jason Bourne-style across rooftops in Tangiers and city streets of London, but what can we expect from the big screen?

The big tentpole productions for 2009 are what are currently endangered. In addition to Angels & Demons, starring Tom Hanks, Oliver Stone's November film Pinkville about the My Lai massacre and starring Bruce Willis was shut down. Mira Nair's Indian epic Shantaram, starring Johnny Depp, was pushed back by Warner Bros. Nine, an adaptation of the Broadway musical inspired by Fellini's 8 1/2 to be directed by Rob Marshall was postponed. And finally, Brad Pitt recently pulled out of Kevin Macdonald's State of Play, a political thriller from Universal, citing the writer's strike as a deciding factor in passing on the film. Apparently, Indiana Jones and the Curse of the Diamond Skull has already finished shooting, so it will not be effected. It is unfortunate that no one can change that ridiculous title though.

This isn't very encouraging, but it's in the best interest of the films to shut down production. Why risk going forward with $100 million if you can't get it exactly right? Here's what we may be seeing instead of those Oscar-bait blockbusters:

1. Bonjour, Guten Tag, Ciao, etc. Since international writers are not covered by the WGA, they're not on strike. We may see more foreign language films hitting our big screens instead of becoming those impossible-to-find DVDs.

2. High School Musical...3? Potentially the scariest outcome of the strike's effect on the film industry is giving movies that would have gone straight to DVD a chance at the big time.

3. Reality at the cinema Documentaries, the good kind of reality programming, may also get a shot at the big screen. Come next year, Michael Moore might not only be the only filmmaker controlling the screens.

4. Schedules are free and clear Top tier actors are available to work since many of their future projects have been tabled. George Clooney, Johnny Depp, Brad Pitt, and Tom Cruise are just a few of the many big names that have had their next projects fall apart. However, there has been a push for a lot of films to be shot in the coming months in case the actors themselves strike when their SAG (Screen Actors Guild) contracts end in June.

5. From the small screen... If TV shows are shut down for five weeks or more (a date soon approaching), the actors that were downgraded to half-pay will either need to be restored to full pay or will need to be made free agents. If the strike goes on, studios may cut deals with the actors, possibly freeing them up to work on feature films.

6. Second chances As unfinished projects are shelved, studios may try to sell actors on ready-to-go projects as second looks. Here's the catch: since edits can't be made, writers won't be able to tweak scripts to tailor them to a particular actor.

7. Clean slates Studios put a lot of time and money into working out production slates for the future. These will have to be redone as projects fall apart and actors are freed up for other work.

For now, the WGA strike is having a bigger effect on television series than on the film industry, but if a settlement isn't reached soon, movies might be in bad shape this time next year. My suggestion is similar to that for those unwilling to cut down on their TV watching: there have been wonderful developments in technology in recent years. We, unlike generations before us, are able to stroll down to the local video store and get our very own copies of old, and more importantly, good movies. Google the Oscar-winning films from the past few years, check out the Criterion Collection, or just start at "A" and work your way through.

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