Waiting for the sky to fall, and other events that won't come to pass...
This is the first of what I expect will be several recaps of each day of the double strike by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA unions.
It was with tremendous sadness yesterday that I learned actors and actresses in Hollywood joined with the writers already on strike…not!
As dark as yesterday was, I couldn’t help but notice that the sun came up this morning, and in Texas, it was freaking hot, here in the middle of July.
I went outside to see if I could find large chunks of blue sky on the ground, but went back inside empty-handed.
The campaign of statements of solidarity, each union with the other, began in earnest and did not disappoint. This, from The Nanny:
Surely, I’m not the only one who can see the irony, here…
‘We are being victimized by a very greedy enterprise,’ SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher said during Thursday’s press conference. ‘At some point you have to say, “No, we’re not going to take this anymore.”’
The über self-important narcissists of Hollywood are about to learn just how unnecessary they are to the rest of America, if not the world.
To illustrate this soon-to-be-realized fact by these brave thespians and would-be ink-stained wretches, the studios still need to market its product. This will now require that the story be the draw rather than the star.
My money is on the studio’s ability to be resourceful and creative in its marketing efforts.
Promoting a film without the star isn’t necessarily a new dilemma. Russell Schwartz, associate professor at Chapman University, recalls multiple campaigns facing such an issue during his time as president of marketing for New Line.
His team had to employ a different strategy for navigating 2006’s The Nativity Story… a heavier focus on the IP [Intellectual Property] itself.
To add insult to injury, the matrix is demonstrating how the industry at-large is growing increasingly dependent on its media outlets’ use of AI to serve the function of entertainment “journalism.”
I understand the concern. How long before AI replaces the writers?
‘These AI-generated posts are only the beginning. Such articles represent an existential threat to journalism,’ the union, which represents editorial employees at G/O Media, said in a statement Wednesday. ‘Our members are professionally harmed by G/O Media’s supposed “test” of AI-generated articles.’
The union, in its statement, said it ‘demands an immediate end of AI-generated articles on G/O Media sites,’ which include The A.V. Club, Deadspin, Gizmodo, Jalopnik, Jezebel, Kotaku, The Onion, Quartz, The Root and The Takeout. ‘Our members in the GMG Union and Onion Union have demanded bargaining from G/O Media on this new workplace development to no avail,’ WGA East said.
Well, I have some news for them – AI isn’t coming – it’s here.
It occurs to me that one of the reasons that movies, and even television programs were so much better fifty-some years ago (or even more) is because those writing those screenplays and scripts, in large part, had more than a few experiences in common.
They either grew up in America living through the Great Depression, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, the 1960s, witnessing and being part of the resilience demonstrated by taking on such adversity and not only overcoming it but thriving; exhibiting American Exceptionalism like that of which JFK spoke:
at the 00:05:23 mark
…and also that of which Reagan spoke:
These writers were able to draw on their experiences and apply them as they adapted best-selling novels, critically-acclaimed biographies, and the overlooked stories of world history into epic films like: Gone with the Wind, Casablanca, 12 Angry Men, On the Waterfront, Lawrence of Arabia, The Godfather, and Patton – and they could do that with no fear of losing their jobs if what they wrote didn’t support the accepted narrative.
How many worthwhile films will never be made because the story told is either the wrong one, or is done in a way that contradicts the political correctness and the principles of the woke religion?
In any event, here is a sampling of headlines of “news” stories that I found noteworthy:
Fall festivals are f^%#ed.
Shafran hopes his contribution can help encourage resolve on the picket line. ‘No amount of money on the other side can beat our own positive energy, our own solidarity,’ he insists.
I give the guy some credit – he says all the right things, but really, he’s hoping he can leverage his profile here into an acting gig, if the truth were to be told.
I have no doubt that TikTok will soon be full of videos like this one, only in support of the folks on strike:
‘The heartbeat of entertainment is the creativity and dedication of working people using their talents and skills to bring cherished stories to life. It is this very heartbeat the studios threaten to silence with reckless disregard for fairness and human artistry. The urgency of this moment cannot be overstated. Our industry is at a crossroads, and the actions taken now will affect the future of labor relations in Hollywood and beyond…’
Okaaaaay…just a little over the top, don’tcha think?
I rather imagine what will eventually happen should this strike continue for too long, is that studios will just use unknown actors and actresses – just like the famous ones were once upon a time.
‘We will not be used as a bargaining chip. We deserve our own deal and we deserve better than this,’ states the letter obtained by The Hollywood Reporter. The proposed one-year extension deal comes as local film, TV talent and crews face a shutdown of American film and TV projects in and around Vancouver as SAG-AFTRA begins its own work stoppage in the wake of an ongoing strike by the WGA.
Well, there may be a lot more union members who might be sympathetic, but I don’t know how many can forgo putting food on the table, feeding their kids, keeping a roof over their heads, and clothes on their backs. Eventually, self-interest on behalf of one’s family is going to win out, here.
Before we get to the net worth of the Canadian actor and actresses cited above, I reluctantly offer this as reference.
As was pointed out previously, the lack of self-awareness is shocking, even for Hollywood North.
Martin Short – net worth: $50,000,000
Elliot Ellen Page – net worth: $10,000,000
Tatiana Maslany – net worth: $3,000,000
Granted, $1MM isn’t what it once was (even in Canada, eh?), and it doesn’t go as far as one might be led to believe. I have no idea who the hell is Tatiana Maslany, but kudos to her for figuratively putting her meager $3MM fortune at risk to support her fellow actors south of the border.
Nonetheless, what is conspicuous by its absence is an account of these three, along with everyone else mentioned in my post earlier, writing checks to individual writers who have already been on strike for weeks, now. Not even generous contributions to funds set up by the union – speaking of that, I’ve yet to see a GoFundMe set up for the striking writers. I guess it’s the virtue signal that counts.
Thank you, for your indulgence, dear reader. You are awesome!
Ha! I was just writing about this.
I had to do a quick re-evaluation of Fran Drescher when I discovered that she's an "anti-vaxxer" and was challenging the "safety" protocols and mandates.
But beyond that, Fran aside, the use of AI and automation have been affecting the workforce at large now for years. Andrew Yang was talking about it during the 2020 election, but factories have been largely robotic for a long time, reducing the need for workers.
I also can't help but see the irony that the same group of people howling about AI challenging their jobs and having to take pay cuts are the same group of people who tell the rest of the laboring class to stop freaking out about all the immigrants coming in and undercutting wages for the actual working class. The principle is the same. And had Hollywood taken the time to set down their Black Lives Matter and Hate Has No Home Here and Trans Rights Are Human Rights signs, they might have noticed what was going on with the "deplorables," the canaries in the coal mine, as you will. But the "deplorables" didn't matter and so here we are, and I'm not sure I know too many people who care. The movies and shows are all pretty lousy anyway.
Gotta say, I’m soaking up ‘Schadenfreude’ over this strike...