Clockwise from top left: Emily in Paris, The Last of Us, Deadpool 2 and Dune: Part 2 Photo: Stephanie Branchu/Netflix/HBO/Niko Tavernise/Twentieth Century Fox via AP
Ho Leawood is still in deep stagnation as American film, film and television writers continue their strikes. The strike is already having all sorts of side effects, from affecting celebrity podcasts to British talk show booking policies, as American stars are barred from playing their projects under the terms of the Screen Actors Guild strike announced on July 14 (following the Writers Guild of America shutdown that began on May 2).
But the biggest impact will be on the productions themselves, where everything from the latest Marvel juggernauts to long-awaited sequels to beloved films is in limbo. Here is a list of some of the movies and TV shows that have been put on hold as the strikes continue.
1. Deadpool 3
Images have already appeared with the witty Deadpool performed by Ryan Reynolds and the resurrected Wolverine performed by Hugh Jackman. But shooting at Pinewood Studios has been delayed due to a strike by the actors.
2. Gladiator 2
Paul Mescal, Denzel Washington and Pedro Pascal spent two-thirds of filming on Ridley Scott's sequel to his Roman epic, filmed in Malta and Morocco (where six stuntmen were injured in a fight scene in June, some of them requiring treatment for burns). But now the project is suspended.
The fourth season of Stranger Things premiered on Netflix last year. Photo: Tina Rowden/Netflix 3. Stranger Things Season 5
The Netflix movie was supposed to start filming this summer. But because of the writers' strike, the cameras didn't even turn on. Now all the actors are also on the picket line. The inverted position has been turned inside out, and we may not return to Hawkins until 2025.
4. The Last of Us Season 2
With the first series garnering a staggering 24 Emmy nominations, fans have been eagerly awaiting the return of Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey's tale of mutant mushrooms and post-apocalyptic North America. The script for the first episode had already been written, but now all work was stopped. Probably only in 2025 will we find out what happened to Joel and Ellie.
5. Andor, second season
The good news for Star Wars fans is that the scripts for Tony Gilroy's tough Star Wars spin-off were finished before the writers' strike. The bad news is that because of the actors' strike, it's impossible to film these scripts. It is unlikely that Andor will return to 2024, as was originally planned.
Brad Pitt and Damson Idris on the launch Ke during the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Silverstone in July. Photo: Ryan Pearce/Getty Images 6. Brad Pitt, Formula 1 film
Pitt was recently spotted filming the British Grand Prix for his Apple-backed film directed by Joseph Kosinski of Top Gun Maverick. Pitt plays a former Formula One ace who comes out of retirement to mentor young talent. The film, which also stars Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem and Tobias Menzies, has yet to be titled. Production began in early July, but then was suspended due to the announcement of a strike by the actors.
7. Dune: Part Two
The second half of Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of the science fiction classic may be pushed back from its scheduled November release date to early 2024. The film is almost finished. However, according to SAG rules, actors cannot participate in its promotion. So Warner Bros is considering postponing Dune until stars Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya, as well as Rebecca Ferguson, Austin Butler and Florence Pugh, can complete the project.
8. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
James Wan and Jason Momoa are reuniting for another DC blockbuster, with Ben Affleck as Batman. However, as with Dune, Warners is considering delaying the completed film until next year so the cast can promote it.
9. Beetlejuice 2
Michael Keaton and Tim Burton have reunited for the 1989 goth comedy sequel (with Jenna Ortega on Wednesday), but while filming has wrapped in and around London, the important Vermont finale is now on hold.
Blake Lively and Brandon Sklenar on the set of It Ends With Us earlier this year. Photo: Nancy Rivera/Bauer-Griffin. 10. It Ends With Us Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have already begun filming the adaptation of Colleen Hoover's bestselling novel in Hoboken, New Jersey. The studio behind the production said it was an “independent” film and wanted a sequel, a claim denied by the WGA that forced all involved to turn off their instruments.
10. Yellow Vests Season Three The writers of the 1990s cannibal drama spent exactly one day working on series three when the WGA went on strike. Since then, production has been suspended.
11. Emily in Paris Season 4
Cynics will say that even the Hollywood strike has its upsides—until Emily is no longer in Paris, for example. Fans won't agree, and their berets could be ruined by not hearing from Lily Collins and her French friends until 2026.
13. Minecraft
Aquaman himself, Jason Momoa, was scheduled to join Steve Carell and Matt Berry in New Zealand next month for a new Hollywood video game adaptation. But the transition from game to movie is paused.
Tom Cruise Mission: Impossible. Payback Part One is currently in theaters. Photo: Paramount Pictures via AP 14. Mission Impossible. But even Tom Cruise, reunited with director Christopher McQuarrie, can't get past two Hollywood hits, and the second half of the new Mission: Impossible is officially on hold.
15. Euphoria Season 3
Having just wrapped up the astonishingly failed vanity project The Idol on The Weeknd, showrunner Sam Levinson was about to return to his day job, directing the candid teen drama Euphoria. Without scripts and actors, the show is not expected to return until 2026, when a significant portion of the “teenage” cast will be in their thirties.
16. Mortal Kombat 2
Karl Urban, Jessica McNamee, Lewis Tan and Ludy Lin are part of the Simon McQuoid video game sequel. At least that was the case until filming in Queensland, Australia was put on hold three months before the end.
17. Venom 3
Tom Hardy was to be joined by Ted Lasso star Juno Temple and Doctor Strange's Chiwetel Ejiofor in the third installment of the dark superhero trilogy. But production in Spain has stopped now.
Tom Holland's final appearance as Spider-Man in the 2021 film Spider-Man: No Way Home. Credit: Sony Pictures via AP 18. Spider-Man 4Tom Holland was in talks to return as Spidey. But now Marvel and Sony, who share the rights to Spider-Man, have put that discussion on hold. Holland also plans to give up acting for a year, another web to trap poor Spidey in.
19: White Lotus Season Three
Early filming began in Thailand on this anthology series about what happens when the super-rich come to a luxurious vacation spot. But now everything is up in the air – the “White Lotus” is closed until further notice.
20. Marvel Blade
Fangs are a lot of Hollywood! In the vampire superhero reboot, Mahershala Ali stars alongside Mia Goth and Aaron Pierre. True Detective screenwriter Nick Pizzolatto was supposed to be the screenwriter, but he, along with the rest of the screenwriters, set to work.
21. Blade Runner 2099
Ridley Scott has teamed up with Amazon to create a spin-off of his dystopian masterpiece Robots Have Feelings Too for the small screen, set 50 years after the Blade Runner 2049 sequel 0ecda38d5aab321c0a09b0848ee5.jpg” /> The Lord of the Rings Rings of Power 22 The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power Season 2
Just as Frodo crawls to the top of Mount Doom in The Lord of the Rings, this Tolkien prequel may have almost reached its goal – although who knows in what form? A writers' strike was called 19 days into filming. Showrunners JD Payne and Patrick McKay immediately left the set of Bray Film Studios in Berkshire, but it's unclear how this will affect the series.
23. Wicked
Ariana Grande, Michelle Yeoh and Cynthia Erivo have been filming the Wizard of Oz prequel in Buckinghamshire for several years now, and much of the film is already in the works. But a few scenes still had to be filmed and Wicked (to be split into Parts 1 and 2) is expected to be delayed.
24. The Thunderbolts
Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan and Julia Louis-Dreyfus were set to star in a Marvel movie about an Avengers-style anti-hero team. Atlanta filming postponed.
Freaky Friday stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan to return in sequel to 2003's 25th Freaky Friday Part 2 Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan are eager to return in a sequel to their 2003 hit about body swapping. But Curtis has chilled hopes that the film will soon see the light of day. “We are in the midst of a contract dispute,” she said. “So, until these writers are properly paid and protected by the producers who make them billions, we won’t be able to tell you more about the Freaky Friday sequel other than that it’s happening.”
26. Season 4 of The Mandalorian
Grogu can enjoy his extended vacation. The writers' strike has already pushed back the fourth season of Disney + strike. Given that the actors are also on the picket line, filming will not begin until November this year.
27. Penguin
Colin Farrell was at the picket line for the writers' strike, so it's no surprise that his Batman spin-off has been delayed. “For 25 years, I supported my family through writing,” Farrell said. “There are no corporations without the income that writers generate. Business is changing, writers should be fairly rewarded for the beauty of what they do.”
Charlie Cox in the Netflix Original Series Daredevil. Murdoch. Alas, production was halted in June when WGA picketers gathered at New York's Marvel Studios in Silvercup East.
29. Metropolis
Promising Apple TV + Robot's Sam Esmail's remake of Fritz Lang's silent classic has been canceled due to a writers' strike. “Forced spending and the uncertainty associated with the ongoing [writers' strike in the US] led to this difficult decision,” said Universal Studio Group, which oversaw the project.
30. Luck
Aziz Ansari was supposed to start filming his directorial debut in Los Angeles' Koreatown in May, but then the writers went on strike. Ansari plays alongside Seth Rogen and Keanu Reeves. But now the whole project is on hold.
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