Across the world, Hollywood tentpoles are shutting down. Marvel’s "Deadpool 3", Ridley Scott’s "Gladiator" sequel, Tom Cruise’s "Mission: Impossible 8", Clint Eastwood’s latest thriller “Juror #2”, and Brad Pitt's Formula One-themed racing drama are among the projects on hold as the actors' strike commences.
The SAG-AFTRA stoppage comes two months after the writers' strike hobbled the TV business and delayed multiple movies. Now the movie business stops as well, though studios are looking to move the ball forward with what they’ve already shot while making plans for resuming production down the road.
At Marvel Studios, which has multiple films and TV shows in post-production, that’s an ethos studio head Kevin Feige and co-president Louis D’Esposito shared in an email to staff Thursday.
“We recognize how much you’ve all done on your specific projects and it’s disappointing when carefully laid plans have to shift, but constant change is the nature of the production business, and our teams are no stranger to unexpected challenges and rising to meet them,” Feige and D’Esposito wrote.
“We deeply appreciate all your efforts to make the best of the situation, and we can all hope that a new agreement will be finalized soon so we can resume the great work we have in process.”
Studios have long known the strike was a possibility, and some films had contingency plans in place in the event of a strike. One producing source notes their film front-loaded scenes with a key actor, who they knew would be unavailable in the fall due to a series commitment after a potential strike ended.
One area where work can potentially continue is animation, particularly for projects set to roll out in 2025 and beyond. As is common practice, animators could have people around their studio record temporary voices on upcoming projects to help inform the work, with SAG-AFTRA actors recording their lines at a later time. Animated features aiming for a 2024 release, however, might be more likely to be at a point in the production where actors would be needed to record the final dialogue.
Movies slated for a 2024 release include "Kung Fu Panda 4" (March 8), "Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse" on March 29, "Despicable Me 4 "(July 3), and "Transformers One" (Sept. 13).
Read the list of newly halted productions below.
Beetlejuice 2
The Tim Burton production, with Michael Keaton reprising his role as the crude ghost, is almost done with shooting in London but was still expected to film one last sequence in Vermont when the strike occurred.
Deadpool 3
The superhero sequel was filming in the U.K., with Hugh Jackman reprising his role as Wolverine alongside Ryan Reynolds. It is also featuring Jennifer Garner returning as Elektra, the role she first played twenty years ago in Daredevil.
Gladiator 2
The action sequel, starring Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington and Pedro Pascal, was filming in Morocco. It was about two-thirds of the way done and had finished work in its Malta location.
Juror #2
The Clint Eastwood drama about a murder trial was shooting in Savannah, Georgia, but will suspend production. The cast includes Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, Zoey Deutch, Kiefer Sutherland, and Leslie Bibb.
Lilo & Stitch
The live-action adaptation of the 2002 animated Disney movie was filming in Hawaii. Directed by Dean Fleischer Camp from a script by Chris Kekaniokalani Bright, production was reportedly set to wrap in early August.
Minecraft
The video game adaptation, starring Jason Momoa, was expected to begin shooting next month in New Zealand.
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two
The Tom Cruise sequel has completed work on most of its major action sequences but still has more filming to do. The production was on a scheduled hiatus while Cruise, writer-director Christopher McQuarrie, and the rest of the cast promoted “Dead Reckoning Part One,” which opened in theaters this week.
Mortal Kombat 2
The video game sequel was filming in Australia.
Venom 3
The third entry of the Tom Hardy antihero saga has paused filming, as the crew working on the movie was given notice on Monday in anticipation of the strike.
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