Deadpool 3 and Mission: Impossible 8 Among Movies Halting Production Amid Actors’ Strike

Movies

Audiences may feel the effects of the actors’ strike sooner than they thought. According to The Hollywood Reporter, several films that are scheduled to arrive in theaters as early as next year have had their productions halted; one of them had been rumored to be near completion. The films THR has confirmed have ceased production are Deadpool 3, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 2, Venom 3, Lilo & Stitch (the live-action remake), Gladiator 2, and the untitled F1 film from Joseph Kosinski starring Brad Pitt. Additionally, they believe Wicked, Mortal Kombat 2, and Juror #2 (which will presumably be Clint Eastwood’s final film) are also stopping. And while animated movies are likely in a better position, those scheduled for 2024 might be delayed, including Kung Fu Panda 4, Despicable Me 4, Transformers One, and Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. For Marvel, Deadpool 3 is the only film they have in production, but several other movies and TV shows are in post-production; Kevin Feige and Louis D’Esposito sent the following email to their employees:

“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… 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.”

The writers’ strike was going to be a huge thorn in their side, but the actors’ strike has really ground Hollywood to a halt. It makes sense; writing takes place before the movie starts production (ideally; nowadays, I think they’re usually rewriting a week before the movie is released, especially at Marvel), but the actors have to be there when you shoot the movie. It’s like a snap of the fingers; suddenly, your stars are gone, and there’s no movie to film. THR seems to think they can get these movies back into production fast enough to have them meet their release dates, but I don’t know about that; the AMPTP will have to give in fast to end the strike. Not only that, but the actors are showing strong solidarity with the writers, whose strike could go on for the rest of the year, especially as the studios have dug their heels in and said they’ll wait till every screenwriter in Hollywood is starving and homeless before they negotiate. Meanwhile, some shoots took precautions in anticipation of the strike, like an unnamed movie that filmed as many scenes as possible with its lead early in production. But even that isn’t going to make up for losing a whole cast. If the strikes aren’t settled, next year’s movie lineup is going to look very interesting.