Another stake has been put in the heart of the MCU's upcoming Blade reboot.
via THR:
Marvel Studios is shutting down preproduction on its vampire thriller starring Mahershala Ali, which was set to begin filming next month in Atlanta. The feature project, which has been paused once before, becomes the first tentpole movie impacted by the strike.
Cast and crewmembers are being notified this afternoon.
Blade had recently hired True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto to work on the script, but, according to an insider, “time simply ran out.” The studio will restart the production once the strike is over.
Since the strike action began Tuesday, the biggest impact has been on late night talk shows and Saturday Night Live. One drama series, Showtime’s Billions, halted production Thursday due to picketing.
While some studios have one or two movies going into production, Marvel is seemingly propping up the industry by planning on having three movies shooting at the same time, not to mention two series. Even with the Blade shutdown, it is gearing up for one of the busiest times in the company’s history.
Captain America: New World Order is currently filming in Atlanta. TV show Agatha: Coven of Chaos is also shooting in Atlanta, while fellow series Wonder Man is filming in Los Angeles. Deadpool 3 is expected to go in front of cameras later this month in London, while Thunderbolts is to hit Atlanta in June. As of now, Thunderbolts is still on track.
Fantastic Four, which is in the midst of the most closely watched casting search since Marvel hired Tom Holland to play Spider-Man eight years ago, is eying a January 2024 start date in London. That could change, if the strike were to drag on and on for six months or more, though according to sources that is seen as unlikely.
Still, even if the strike lasts just one month or six weeks, there would likely be an impact, with more movies’ start dates being push among the repercussions.
“There’s a billion dollars net in production costs that are exposed because of the strike. That’s certainly a concern,” says one source involved with the Marvel’s current slate of projects regarding those in or about to go into production.
Most big-budget blockbusters are known for their scripts evolving during production. Marvel, however, has a more acute reputation for script pages flying off the typewriters during filming. And the strike will mark uncharted territory for the studio, which is used to having a writer on set to rework things on the fly.
As much as I'm excited for these upcoming films, I stand with the WGA because writers, who are the backbone of the entertainment industry deserve a fair wage.
For those not familiar with what's happening, the WGA (Writer's Guild of America) argues that writers have been negatively impacted by the streaming era, and that studios including Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video haved “created a gig economy inside a union workforce” according to a statement published by Deadline.
The WGA is seeking a base pay increase for writers, but also wants a new deal on residual payments (royalties) earned from streaming. Currently, writers are paid more for broadcast shows that are a hit, while streaming shows earn them a flat amount regardless of success.
The WGA also wants to ensure jobs for its writers, accusing studios of abusing “mini rooms” where shows are written with fewer writers or over a compressed timeline.
There are also concerns about AI, with the WGA concerned studios could train AI on writers’ work, or rewrite scripts using the technology.
On May 1, the WGA announced that it had failed to come to an agreement over suitable working conditions for their members.
The union said the decision to strike was made after negotiations produced a “wholly insufficient” response to “the existential crisis writers are facing”.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) said it had offered a “comprehensive package proposal” including higher pay.
The last time the WGA went on strike was in 2007 for 100 days. Let's see how long this one lasts.
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