‘House of the Dragon’ to film even while the Hollywood Actors Guild is on strike! Why is it that all production & promotion of movies and dramas are supposed to be canceled?

Last Updated on 07/15/2023 by てんしょく飯

Even after the Hollywood actors’ labor union, the Screen Actors Guild of America (SAG-AFTRA), goes on strike, HBO’s fantasy drama “House of the Dragon” will be able to film Season 2 as scheduled.

Video: “House of the Dragon” Episode 1, 5-minute clip from the beginning.

SAG-AFTRA, which has 160,000 actors in the U.S. as members, has been in talks with AMPTP (Association of Motion Picture Producers of America) for about a month to improve their treatment, including AI measures and wage increases, but negotiations broke down. On July 13, the deadline for negotiations, the union announced that it would go on strike.

As a result, all production & promotion of movies and dramas were suspended. The Writers Guild of America (WAG) strike is also showing no sign of ending, and the movie capital of Hollywood is expected to fall into “dysfunction,” but “House of the Dragon” does not seem to be affected by the strike.

According to a report in Variety, “House of the Dragon” will be able to continue filming in the UK regardless of the SAG-AFTRA strike. The reason for this seems to be related to the “hometown” and “membership union” of the actors.

In fact, most of the actors in “House of the Dragon” are from the UK, and they work under contract with Equity, a British labor union. Equity is not legally allowed to strike in solidarity with SAG-AFTRA, so they can continue filming.

In addition, Equity announced that it will “support SAG-AFTRA and the members of the union by all legal means. On the other hand, the company is calling on union members not to join the strike.

Equity’s statement reads, “Performers who join a strike (or refuse to cross the picket line*) in the UK will not be protected against being fired or sued for breach of contract by the producers or anyone else involved. Likewise, if Equity encourages someone to join a strike or refuse to cross a picket line, Equity itself is breaking the law and is liable for damages and injunctions.”

*A means of protesting or making demands during strikes, etc.