Fearing they won’t be able to set casts for film packages to sell at key festival markets, indie film producers are appealing to SAG-AFTRA to fast-track interim casting agreements that are holding things up.
A number of projects have fallen away and others are at risk, a half dozen producers told Deadline, for films that would be shopped at the Toronto Film Festival in September and the American Film Market in October.
The logjam, they say, is that the guild wants them to apply for what’s called SAG signatory status before requesting an interim agreement. Clearing that hurdle is currently the only way they can cast their films.
“You don’t need to be a SAG signatory in a normal situation to send scripts to actors,” noted one producer. “The key to the indie business is getting actors interested in our projects. That is the lifeblood of our business. ... It lets a producer put the financing together.”
Problem is, producers say, SAG wants to know everything about a project before those two key elements are in place. It's a cart before the horse situation.
“They check every dollar you are spending, every investor that is putting money in. They go through the organization with a microscope. It takes weeks. And you are sweating bullets. And, finally, the minute before you have to push your start date, they call and say, ‘You’re approved,’ ” another producer said of the signatory-vetting process. >>>"A Lot Of Us Are In No-Man’s Land" |
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| Deadline Exclusives & Originals |
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GOP Debate Highlights - Former Vice President Mike Pence was the first candidate to deploy a debate strategy of taking on upstart Vivek Ramaswamy, who is surging in the polls. Ramaswamy tried to challenge Pence to commit to pardoning Trump should he be convicted, but Pence stood his ground. “He asked me to put him over the Constitution. And I chose the Constitution,” said the former VP. Ron DeSantis, stuck between them, had a rather unmemorable evening. >>> Top 5 Moments
Counterprogramming - During the debate, Donald Trump's interview with Tucker Carlson ran on Twitter/X. The now-digital Carlson goaded Trump to take digs at the decline of TV, and POTUS 45 was glad to oblige He hit out at cable, saying it "has lost credibility.” He blasted old foil CNN as “dead …doing no ratings at all,” and new enemy Fox News. Overall, Trump’s talk with Carlson was full of self-pity. He griped about being betrayed by “bad guy” Mitch McConnell, his impeachments, his four indictments, Hilary Clinton, Joe Biden and protests. >>> Epstein Question
Lionsgate & STX Make It Official - As Deadline first foretold, Lionsgate has made a deal to distribute and market STX's movies. Under the pact, Lionsgate will handle marketing and distribution for future STX theatrical releases in North America as well as distribute STX’s 75-title library across all platforms. The first project to be released will be Neil Burger’s thriller, The Marsh King’s Daughter, under Lionsgate’s Roadside Attractions label on Oct. 6. >>> Future Projects
Captain Blood - Hong Kong-based producer Tsui Hark has boarded as co-producer of the Chinese pirate epic Shih, Queen of the Sea. Hark will partner with Anthony McCarten, Dakota Group and Facing East. McCarten, whose biopic scripts range from Bohemian Rhapsody to The Theory of Everything, The Two Popes, Darkest Hour and numerous others, has written the script about Shih Yang, aka Cheng I Sao, who dominated the South China Sea during the Qing Dynasty. >>> Summer 2024 Shoot
Baldwin's Bid Denied - Facing a potential refiling of criminal charges in the fatal 2021 shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, Alec Baldwin on Wednesday failed in an attempt to have a civil case over the tragedy dismissed. The judge also denied an additional motion to stay the matter until the criminal trial is over. >>>Next Moves |
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After seven seasons that included multiple serial killers, at least one human sacrifice, lots of drug trafficking, an organ harvesting cult, a parallel universe, and time travel in the name of saving the town from an impending comet… Riverdale has come to an end. The CW series bid farewell to its characters during a heartfelt episode on Wednesday. Executive producer Sarah Schechter reflected on the past seven seasons of Riverdale with Deadline and spoke about how the idea for the nostalgic finale came about. >>> Read The Q&A |
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BY THE NUMBERS
2.6 million - Netflix's gross subscriber additions in July, according to research firm Antenna. The streaming giant has seen new growth due to its introduction of paid password sharing and a cheaper tier with ads. |
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More News
📺 Streaming service Max is adding a CNN hub, including a 24/7 livestream drawing on domestic and international linear feeds, familiar shows hosted by Anderson Cooper and Jake Tapper and a smattering of new programming. CNN Max, as the new destination is known, will launch September 27 at no extra charge to Max subscribers. Stand-alone streaming outlet CNN+ was shut down by management soon the April 2022 close of the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger after just weeks in operation.
🏈 To the relief of many in the embattled pay-TV business, a reliable viewer draw is about to return. College football season kicks off on Saturday, with a slate of seven televised games starting with Notre Dame’s opener against Navy. A shadow is falling across the gridiron, however. Millions of viewers interested in the Fighting Irish contest may need to tune in via streaming service Peacock instead of on linear NBC because of a protracted carriage battle between Nexstar Media Group and DirecTV.
📺 Sam Levinson is giving Euphoria fans a little tease on what to expect for the third season of the HBO drama series. In an interview with Elle, the show’s creator and executive producer described Season 3 as a “film noir” and teased that Zendaya’s character of a recovering addict would “explore what it means to be an individual with principles in a corrupt world.”
⚖️ The verbal clash between Lizzo and a trio of dancers suing the Grammy winner for sexual harassment, fostering a “hostile work environment,” discrimination and more has seen the gloves come off — at least when it comes to the lawyers. “Our clients aren’t afraid of Singer or his empty threats or his victim shaming,” Neama Rahmani, attorney for dancers Arianna Davis, Crystal Williams and Noelle Rodriguez, told Deadline on Wednesday after Lizzo’s lawyer Marty Singer said earlier in the day that her clients’ case is peppered with a “range of factual inaccuracies.”
⚖️ Lauren Pazienza, who deliberately and randomly shoved 87-year-old Broadway vocal coach Barbara Gustern to the ground on a Manhattan sidewalk in 2022, causing the elderly woman’s death, changed her plea from not guilty to guilty and will be sentenced to eight years in state prison. |
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Trending  As Barbie becomes the highest-grossing film of 2023 at the domestic box office with north of $575M, she's taking a victory lap. Warner Bros said the Greta Gerwig-directed movie is getting a one-week Imax release starting September 22 in North American locations and select global markets.
🔻 Pete Simon, a Reedy Creek firefighter, ripped into the recent decision by the Ron DeSantis-appointed board that oversees the special district around Disney World to end what it called the “unethical benefits and perks” enjoyed by the 400 or so Reedy Creek Improvement District employees, including firefighters. Simon, one of three firefighters who spoke out, said that when he took the job being able to visit the parks with his kids was among the top reasons he joined. |
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OBITUARIES
🕯 Nancy Frangione, best known for her role as the scheming villainess Cecile DePoulignac on NBC daytime soap Another World, has died. Frangione passed away August 18 in Barnstable, MA. A cause of death is not known. She was 70. 🕯 Terry Funk , the man Ric Flair on Wednesday called, “A Great Wrestler, Entertainer, Unbelievably Fearless, And A Great Friend!” died yesterday, according to Flair and fellow WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley. He was 79. In his tribute, Foley called Funk “the greatest wrestler I ever saw.” Funk also appeared as a bouncer in the movie Road House with Patrick Swayze. In 1999, Funk was featured in director Barry Blaustein’s wrestling documentary Beyond the Mat. He has also appeared in other movies such as Paradise Alley, The Ringer and Over the Top. 🕯 Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2023: Photo Gallery & Obituaries |
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On the Radar
Thu - Trump to turn himself in to GA officials
Sun - The Streamy Awards; National Cinema Day
Mon - Trump's first Jan. 6 hearing; U.S. Open Tennis Championships begin in NYC
Wed - Venice Film Festival opens |
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Show Of Hands - Some of the most telling parts of last night's GOP debate were when Fox News moderators Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum asked for a show of hands on various topics. That included whether the candidates would support a (hypothetically) convicted Donald Trump as the Republican candidate for President, should he be so nominated. Six of the candidates, including Trump's now-estranged VP Mike Pence, raised their hands in assent. Only Asa Hutchinson and Chris Christie demurred. |
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