While it might still be a tentative deal rather than a confirmed one, it appears as if the long-running actors’ strike is finally coming to an end. A series of fractious discussions has led to something of a resolution, a reportedly fair deal that will see the industry go back to normal after the writers’ strike ended in late September. It’s not yet official – expect that to happen within the next 24 hours – but here are some of the biggest shows and films that will be affected immediately:
Deadpool 3
Did Dogpool save the day? Not a chance in gremlin hell. But she IS currently causing the Disney plushy merch department nightmares. Coming with the movie, Summer 2024 🐶💩L pic.twitter.com/mMtUb4wSsk
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) November 9, 2023
The third antihero instalment was one of the most high-profile productions forced to shut down when the strike came into effect, after the film had already been hit by the writers’ strike forcing its star Ryan Reynolds into non-improv mode. The film, which brings Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine into the fold, was reportedly 50% complete at the time and will now be one of the first to rush back into production (Variety claims it will start shooting before Thanksgiving) and while reports suggest it might still struggle to meet its intended May 2024 release date, it’s possible that a late summer bow might now be more likely. Reynolds has already tweeted, since the news came out, that “Dogpool”, AKA a dog dressed as Deadpool, would be joining the cast.
Gladiator 2
Ridley Scott’s follow-up to his Oscar-winning epic had already gone through enough behind-the-scenes drama before it got the green light (the original was 23 years ago after all) but just two months into production, it was spears down as the actors’ strike took hold. The film, starring Paul Mescal and Pedro Pascal, will now be restarted as soon as possible which will be bad news for the second season of The Last of Us with Pascal, like many actors, forced to prioritise projects that are already in production. In a recent New Yorker profile, Scott revealed that he used his downtime to create an extended cut of his upcoming Napoleon biopic while also editing completed Gladiator 2 footage.
Wonka
While Timothée Chalamet’s other big 2023 tentpole Dune 2 moved into 2024 when the strike came into effect to allow the many big-name actors to promote, his Roald Dahl prequel stood firm, the trailer suggesting a Christmas release would be more suitable. Chalamet had already been announced as the host for this week’s Saturday Night Live (actors appearing are seen as “working under the Network Code agreement”, which is not a contract that is part of the strike) but he would have been unable to actively promote the film (TV spots in the ad breaks would have joined the dots). Now he’s free to not only push Wonka on Saturday but as much as humanly possible until the December release, alongside his co-stars Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant and Sally Hawkins.
The White Lotus
The third season of Mike White’s award-winning comedy had, like other HBO shows such as Euphoria, been pushed into 2025 as a result of both strikes. With the writers’ strike over, White told Entertainment Weekly that he was “seriously finishing scripts” while teasing that the new season, set in Thailand, would be “longer, bigger, crazier”. Production is set to start at the beginning of 2024 and with the actors’ strike out of the way, it’s likely that casting news will soon follow. So far just Natasha Rothwell, who played Belinda in season one, has been confirmed.
Beetlejuice 2
Tim Burton’s belated sequel to his 1988 hit had only two days left of its shoot when the actors’ strike came into effect, having already caused some raised eyebrows when production continued through the writers’ strike. The follow-up brings back Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder and Catherine O’Hara while bringing in Wednesday’s Jenna Ortega as the new lead. Warners had dated it for September 2024, which is still seen as doable given that Burton has said the film is “99% done”.
Maestro
The Oscar-tipped Leonard Bernstein biopic had been Netflix’s big awards hope of the year and followed the expected route for something of such scale and expectation, premiering at the Venice film festival before screening at both the New York and London festivals. But its star and director, Bradley Cooper, was limited to brief red carpet appearances, the lack of a directors’ strike technically freeing him to promote it but the actors’ strike making that a close to impossible maze to figure out. With promotional activity now allowed, expect Cooper to be on a PR blitz, showing up at For Your Consideration events and securing major interviews, more eyes on his story and attachment to Bernstein helping to push him as a major Oscar contender.
Abbott Elementary
While network television has seen a lot of its sheen dulled by the rise of streaming shows, the fall still carries with it a certain amount of excitement with a host of new shows aiming to break out and some returning ones aiming to cut through the noise. Arguably the biggest network hit of recent years, the school-set mockumentary Abbott Elementary, has found a way to restore the old-fashioned appeal of appointment viewing and become one of the only network shows to be a major awards contender. But the strikes forced its third season deeper into the future, expected to begin at some point in 2024. The show’s star and creator, Quinta Brunson, has confirmed that the season will be shorter and that writing is already under way and with the exhausting efficiency of network production, it’ll probably be back to set within weeks.
Venom 3
Another high-profile tentpole that was disrupted by the strikes is the third film in the surprisingly successful Venom series (over $1.3bn globally to date) which started production in Spain back in June. Its star Tom Hardy is joined by Juno Temple and Chiwetel Ejiofor for the sequel which is expected to move to London now that the strike is over. The film had been dated for next July but just this week, Sony moved the film to a November 2024 release which should be manageable now that production can resume.
Oppenheimer
While Christopher Nolan’s historical biopic might have been one of the lucky films to bag the majority of its A-list promotion before the actors’ strike was made official, the film’s many stars have been unable to take part in this year’s awards circuit. So while its box office didn’t see a dent (it made a whopping $947m worldwide), Oscar-tipped actors such as Cillian Murphy, Robert Downey Jr and Emily Blunt have been restricted from a second wave of promotion for Academy consideration (Nolan has instead been leading the most recent round). Given the film was released in the summer, a period not usually associated with Oscar contenders, Universal will now be able to remind voters of the film’s many acclaimed performances with events and interviews leading up to nomination time.
Wicked
Announced back in 2012, the big screen adaptation of the hit musical Wicked finally started production back in December 2022 with major sets erected in Buckinghamshire, England. The composer Stephen Schwartz revealed that there were just 10 days left of production when the strike happened. The director Jon M Chu also wrote on social media: “We were only a few days away from being done so we were SO close. It’s been very painful to put a halt to it all but we will be back! And we will finish properly strong when the time is right.” The film, starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, has already been split into two parts with the first still aiming to release in November 2024.
