Oppenheimer director Christopher Nolan is supporting actors and writers and taking a step back from filmmaking as the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes continue.
During the London premiere of Nolan’s new film, the cast left before the screening as the SAG-AFTRA strike loomed. The filmmaker is now opening up about what the strike means saying “It’s not about me.”
“No, absolutely. It’s very important that everybody understands it is a very key moment in the relationship between working people and Hollywood,” Nolan told BBC News. “This is not about me, this is not about the stars of my film. This is not about me, this is not about the stars of my film.”
Actors and writers are taking a stand against the studios to protect themselves against the threat of artificial intelligence and ask for a better residual structure in the era of streaming.
When Nolan took the stage at the London premiere of Oppenheimer, he acknowledged the actors had to leave “to write their picket signs.”
“I have to to acknowledge the work of our incredible cast, led by Cillian Murphy,” Nolan said. “The list is enormous — Robert Downey Jr, Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Kenneth Branagh, Rami Malek and so many more. … You’ve seen them here earlier on the red carpet. Unfortunately, they are off to write their picket signs for what we believe to be an imminent strike by SAG, joining one of my guilds, the Writers Guild, in the struggle for fair wages for working members of their union.”