Melissa McCarthy, Ben Falcone Scrap Plans To Receive Award At LGBTQ Festival In View Of Actors Strike

Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival has cancelled its swanky Women in Cinema gala event at the upcoming Venice Film Festival in response to the ongoing actors’ strike.

EXCLUSIVE: Outgoing Berlinale co-director Mariette Rissenbeek shared a surprising statement during an industry keynote this week at Locarno. 

Will Smith has described the Hollywood actors and writers’ strikes as a “pivotal moment” in the industry.In an Instagram post on Friday (July 28), Smith expressed his support for the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) strikes.“I wanna talk for a second about ACTING,” Smith wrote. “As some of yall mighta heard, my guild, @SAGAFTRA are on strike along with our writer colleagues in the WGA.

Thousands of actors and entertainers are striking in Hollywood and around the country with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) for the first time in over six decades.But one actor who isn’t joining them is Amell, who said the cause is a “reductive negotiating tactic” that he simply doesn’t support.“I feel like I’m insulated in Hollywood, cause that’s where I live, like all the stereotypes that exist. I feel like a lot of people in this room aren’t aware of the strike,” the “Arrow” actor, 42, said during a Q&A at Galaxycon in North Carolina.“I support my union, I do.

Stephen Amell, whose Starz drama series Heels returned for its second season over the weekend, is not going to the mat for the actors strike that is currently taking place in Hollywood.

joined the WGA in taking strike action on July 13, after negotiations broke down with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), who represent major studios like Netflix, Disney, Apple, Amazon, Warner Bros. and others.Both unions are seeking better pay, streaming residuals and safeguards against the use of AI technology amid the rise of streaming services.The strikes look set to have a major impact on the release calendar of upcoming TV shows and films, with many shutting down production in solidarity.Screen Actors Guild national executive director, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, recently said the strike could last until the early months of 2024.“I wouldn’t rule out January or February,” Crabtree-Ireland told the Sydney Morning Herald.

Melissa McCarthy is living the fever dream! The 52-year-old actress is letting fans in on the musical process of becoming Ursula in Disney's live-action film in a new behind-the-scenes featurette. «Getting to sing 'Poor Unfortunate Souls,' I mean, it is a fever dream,» McCarthy says in the clip. «I went to rehearsals for months and months, and I wanted to do that music and the character proud.»The A-list star suggests that her character may have missed her calling as a sultry chanteuse.

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson made an “historic” donation to contribute financial support to the ongoing Hollywood actors’ strike this month.Earlier this month, negotiations broke down between the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) and the US actors’ union SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists), with talks relating to base pay, residuals and the use of artificial intelligence in the industry.On July 13 – the day that the strike was declared – SAG-AFTRA Foundation president Courtney B. Vance and executive director Cyd Wilson wrote a letter to 2,700 of the union’s highest-paid actors to highlight the financial hardship that industry professionals were going to face as they stopped work (via Variety).After sending the letter, Johnson’s team reached out to offer help.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle Editor Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone will not be attending the closing night of this year’s Outfest LA, where they were set to receive the James Schamus Ally Award. The couple was expected to be on hand for the July 23 event at The Montalbán Theatre in Hollywood, but their rep tells Variety that will not make an appearance due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. “We understand that Melissa and Ben are unable to join us for our closing night due to the strike,” Outfest executive director Damien S. Navarro said in a statement Thursday afternoon. “We will miss them, as our closing night will be a wonderful celebration of our community.”

Marjaneh Ayati never expected to be watching dogs for a living.

Prime Video Italy’s scripted chief Davide Nardini took to the stage at the AVP Summit today and provided views on the actors strike, the streamer’s strategic shift towards mainstream audiences and local talent.

Fran Drescher became the "it girl" in Hollywood from the beginning of her career. From dancing with John Travolta in her first film, to creating and starring in her own, award-winning television sitcom, and then pivoting into becoming one of the most powerful people in the industry – Drescher kept her eye on the prize: success.  The New York-native had big dreams as a kid, and wanted to be a writer, hairdresser, actor or politician.

Bethenny Frankel has one question — «Why isn't reality TV on strike?»The former  star posed the question Wednesday in one of her trademark sound-off posts, in which she shared that, during her first season on the hit Bravo show, she earned a paltry $7,250.«Hollywood is on strike. Entertainers are fighting for residuals, and no one will promote anything. Why isn't reality TV on strike?» she asked.

It sounds as though Broadway may be joining the strike efforts.

EXCLUSIVE: AMC’s Interview with the Vampire Season 2 has paused production due to the actors strike, despite the fact it is filmed outside the U.S. with a majority international cast.

It’s been quite a week for filmmaker Andrew Ahn. 

The 41st edition of Outfest is underway in Los Angeles after an opening-night event dominated by talk of the actors strike.

EXCLUSIVE: Hayley Atwell predicted that she’d be on strike now.

Thousands of actors have been walking the picket lines across LA and New York today and it’s clear that the SAG-AFTRA strike against the studios is going to continue to wreak havoc on scripted television.

William Earl The SAG-AFTRA strike has shut down scores of film and TV productions as actors picket. While many sets had already shut down as a result of the WGA writers strike, this will effectively slow Hollywood down to a crawl as negotiations continue. Read Variety‘s list of newly-halted productions below, which will be updated throughout the strike. 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 more sequence in Vermont when the strike took place.