The writer's strike may be over, but the town is still in gridlock mode.
While many studio execs are cautiously optimistic that an actors' walkout won't happen, Hollywood majors are refusing to schedule new start dates on films that can't complete shooting by June 30.
That puts the onus on Screen Actors Guild leaders and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers to get down to bargaining so that the town can truly get back to work.
"We're back in the development business, but when it comes to production, everything is up in the air," said one studio chief.
The uncertainty has prompted Steven Spielberg to halt an April production start on the Aaron Sorkin-scripted DreamWorks drama "The Trial of the Chicago 7." He'll take the extra time to hone the script with Sorkin. Only Sacha Baron Cohen had been set to play Abbie Hoffman -- and is now looking at summer or fall start date -- when the prospect of an actor's strike should be in the rear view mirror.
Says one production [president]: "The studios are sick of it, and the actors are tired of being out of work. At the same time, we're all prepared for a de facto strike. Everybody is designing their production schedules to anticipate an interruption."
Execs say that the extra costs incurred to halt and re-start a film can range from $1million to $5 million on each production, a costly prospect if several films get unplugged.
Most studios are in the midst of shooting pictures that will be done by June and ready for release in 2009.
"Transformers 2" director Michael Bay said the labor cloud has made the process harder, but not impossible as he tries to keep the film on track for its June 26, 2009 release.
"If there is a strike, we shut down, but shutting down isn't that big a deal," Bay said.
"You make accommodations, you make a deal with vending houses on equipment and on the stages where you are shooting. You hope for the best, but you can't be incapacitated by the possibility that there will be a strike. We've got to get this town back to work. I can't imagine anyone wants another strike, we're all tired. Hopefully clearer heads will prevail."
Bay said that the sequel is still recovering from the writer's strike, and that he's playing catch-up after getting back his trio of writers, Ehren Kruger, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci,
"They did a detailed outline before the writer's strike, and now they are in Michael Bay jail, holed up in a hotel and working feverishly," Bay said. "We're paying for a beautiful suite and they are getting a lot of work done. Hiring three writers was unusual, but it has been a godsend in getting us to where we need to be. Somehow you find a way to get it done."
Several of the majors are setting additional plans for summer starts, based on the assumption that the SAG contract talks will be resolved without the kind of work stoppage that crippled the biz during the 100-day writers strike. The sense of confidence is bolstered by the fact that a group of top actors, including George Clooney and Tom Hanks are publicly putting pressure on SAG leaders to avoid such a defacto strike scenario and begin negotiations as soon as possible.
If that doesn't happens, their 2009 release calendars could get complicated...
While I think both the actors and producers want nothing more than to avoid another walkout...I think that the apprehension that exists is somewhat to be expected...Given all that happened during last few months...
Man I want to work for Bay! Being held "prisoner" in a nice (and expensive) hotel suite is a heck of a way to make a living.
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