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      Trump Resigns From Screen Actors Guild

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusBest of Amazon PrimeBest Netflix DocumentariesNew on NetflixAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyFacing Hearing on Capitol Riot, Trump Resigns From Film and TV UnionTop officials at SAG-AFTRA had cited the former president for his role in inciting the mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol last month. With a disciplinary hearing looming, Mr. Trump made his exit.Donald J. Trump appeared in movies like “Home Alone 2.” In his resignation letter to the union, which was preparing for a disciplinary hearing, he wrote, “Who cares!”Matt Stevens and Feb. 4, 2021Updated 3:40 p.m. ETFacing a union disciplinary hearing over his role in the attack on the Capitol, former President Donald J. Trump resigned from the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists on Thursday, assailing the group in a grievance-filled letter.“I write to you today regarding the so-called Disciplinary Committee hearing aimed at revoking my union membership,” Mr. Trump wrote in the letter to the union. “Who cares!” He went on to say that he was resigning immediately.Mr. Trump’s resignation was first reported by Fox News.Mr. Trump — a businessman who, before entering politics, had made several appearances in movies and television shows, most notably on “The Apprentice” — had been charged by the union with “inciting the attack on the U.S. Capitol” on Jan. 6. and of “sustaining a reckless campaign of misinformation aimed at discrediting and ultimately threatening the safety of journalists, many of whom are SAG-AFTRA members,” according to a statement released last month by the union.As a result, the union’s board voted Jan. 19 to find probable cause that Mr. Trump had violated SAG-AFTRA’s Constitution, and it ordered that the matter be heard by the union’s disciplinary committee. Had Mr. Trump been found guilty of the charges by the committee, he would have faced penalties ranging from censure to expulsion.Fox News reported and SAG-AFTRA confirmed that Mr. Trump’s disciplinary hearing had been scheduled to take place this week.“Donald Trump attacked the values that this union holds most sacred — democracy, truth, respect for our fellow Americans of all races and faiths, and the sanctity of the free press,” Gabrielle Carteris, the union’s president said in last month’s statement. “There’s a straight line from his wanton disregard for the truth to the attacks on journalists perpetrated by his followers.”Mr. Trump’s letter, which was obtained by The New York Times and later posted by the union, was dated Feb. 4 and addressed to Ms. Carteris. In it, he blasted the organization, asserting that it had “done little for its members, and nothing for me.”“I no longer wish to be associated with your union,” Mr. Trump wrote. “As such, this letter is to inform you of my immediate resigning from SAG-AFTRA.”Mr. Trump also used the letter to enumerate his own acting accomplishments and argue that he had helped the cable news business thrive. He wrote that he was “very proud of my work on movies such as ‘Home Alone 2,’ ‘Zoolander’ and ‘Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps’; and television shows including ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,’ ‘Saturday Night Live,’ and of course, one of the most successful shows in television history, ‘The Apprentice’ — to name just a few.’’Responding to Mr. Trump’s resignation, SAG-AFTRA offered a simple two-word statement jointly attributed to Ms. Carteris and David White, the union’s national executive director on Thursday afternoon: “Thank you.”Mr. Trump’s departure from the union will not necessarily preclude him from working in film or television, but could give employers reason to think twice before casting him.SAG-AFTRA represents approximately 160,000 actors, singers, journalists and other media professionals in film and television. In its January statement announcing the disciplinary hearing for Mr. Trump, the union noted that reports of intimidation and physical assaults against reporters escalated during the Trump presidency.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      SAG Awards 2021 Nominations: ‘Minari’ Comes on Strong

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      AdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyThe ProjectionistSAG Award Nominations: ‘Minari’ Comes on Strong, ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ Revived“Da 5 Bloods,” snubbed by the Golden Globes, also advances with multiple nominations. Last year’s winner, “Parasite,” went on to take best picture at the Oscars.“Minari” stars from left, Alan S. Kim, Steve Yeun, Noel Cho and Yeri Han.Credit…David Bornfriend/A24, via Associated PressFeb. 4, 2021Updated 12:50 p.m. ETLooking for a little clarity in a messed-up, pandemic-elongated awards season? Nominees for the Screen Actors Guild Awards were announced Thursday, and these prizes, handed out by the Hollywood actors’ guild SAG-Aftra, may provide the best look yet at the contenders with the strongest shots at making the Oscars’ final five.Unlike the weird and wacky Golden Globes, which are voted on by a small group of eccentric foreign journalists, the actors’ guild is more comparable to the academy in its size and membership. Over the last three years, every SAG winner has gone on to win the Oscar, too, so when it comes to awards-season bellwethers, few shows ring louder and truer. (Sorry to Sia’s Golden Globe nominee “Music”: That means your 24-hour reign of confusion has come to a close.)This year’s SAG lineup brings excellent tidings for “Minari,” a Korean-American family drama that missed major recognition at precursors like the Globes and the Gotham Awards. SAG gave the film three big nominations, recognizing the film’s ensemble cast as well as lead actor, Steven Yeun, and supporting actress Youn Yuh-jung.Another film that saw its fortunes rise was the critically derided “Hillbilly Elegy”: Though the Ron Howard-directed drama failed to make the best-cast category, Amy Adams and Glenn Close scored individual nominations over strong competition.In a rebuke to the Golden Globes, where the best-drama lineup was composed of films with majority-white casts, four of the five nominees for the SAGs’ top prize, best cast — “Minari,” “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” “Da 5 Bloods,” and “One Night in Miami” — were made up mainly of people of color, with Aaron Sorkin’s “The Trial of the Chicago 7” taking the fifth spot.What does this mean for contenders like “Nomadland” and “The Father,” which are presumed to be real Oscar threats for best picture but were left out of the SAGs’ top category, even as their actors earned individual nominations? There’s no cause for alarm just yet: SAG voters tend to favor large ensemble casts with multiple people sharing scenes, and more intimate movies often fail to make the best-cast lineup.Still, there were some notable snubs and surprises in the individual acting categories. Though “Da 5 Bloods” earned a best-cast nod and a supporting-actor nomination for Chadwick Boseman, the film’s powerhouse lead, Delroy Lindo, was shut out once again. Meanwhile, “Mank” standout Amanda Seyfried and the “Pieces of a Woman” star Ellen Burstyn were left off the supporting-actress lineup, and “The Little Things” star Jared Leto sneaked into the supporting-actor final-five over far worthier competition, like the snubbed Paul Raci from “Sound of Metal.”The SAG Awards show will be held April 4, and the ceremony itself may provide further hints about this awards season’s ultimate conclusion: Last year’s surprise best-cast win for “Parasite” was a crucial pit stop on the way to that film’s historic best-picture victory at the Oscars.Here are the nominations in the top movie categories:Outstanding Cast“Da 5 Bloods”“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”“Minari”“One Night in Miami”“The Trial of the Chicago 7”Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading RoleRiz Ahmed, “Sound of Metal”Chadwick Boseman, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”Anthony Hopkins, “The Father”Gary Oldman, “Mank”Steven Yeun, “Minari”Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading RoleAmy Adams, “Hillbilly Elegy”Viola Davis, “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”Vanessa Kirby, “Pieces of a Woman”Frances McDormand, “Nomadland”Carey Mulligan, “Promising Young Woman”Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting RoleSacha Baron Cohen, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”Chadwick Boseman, “Da 5 Bloods”Daniel Kaluuya, “Judas and the Black Messiah”Jared Leto, “The Little Things”Leslie Odom Jr., “One Night in Miami”Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting RoleMaria Bakalova, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”Glenn Close, “Hillbilly Elegy”Olivia Colman, “The Father”Youn Yuh-jung, “Minari”Helena Zengel, “News of the World”For a complete list of nominations, including the television categories, go to sagawards.org.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      Surging Virus Prompts Call to Halt In-Person TV and Film Production

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Best of 2020Best ComedyBest TV ShowsBest BooksBest MoviesBest AlbumsAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storySurging Virus Prompts Call to Halt In-Person TV and Film ProductionSAG-AFTRA, the union representing 160,000 people who work in the industry, seeks a “temporary hold” in Los Angeles.A film crew in Los Angeles on Nov. 6. Credit…Etienne Laurent/EPA, via ShutterstockJan. 4, 2021Seven people working on “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” which was being shot at an NBC Universal stage in Studio City, Calif., tested positive for the coronavirus this fall. So did nine people working on the Netflix series “Colin in Black & White” in Gardena. And the Los Angeles County Public Health Department reported that a dozen people working on the sitcom “Young Sheldon” in Burbank got the virus, too.The entertainment industry is so vital to Los Angeles that film and television production were both allowed to continue even after outdoor dining was banned. But now, with the coronavirus surging across California and overwhelming hospitals, unions and industry groups are calling for in-person production to be suspended.“Southern California hospitals are facing a crisis the likes of which we have never seen before,” Gabrielle Carteris, the president of SAG-AFTRA, the union representing 160,000 people who work in film, television and radio, said in a statement. “Patients are dying in ambulances waiting for treatment because hospital emergency rooms are overwhelmed. This is not a safe environment for in-person production right now.”The union was joined in its call for a “temporary hold on in-person production in Southern California” by groups representing producers and advertisers.The recommendation, which was announced on Sunday, came as officials said that major studios in the area had already extended a standard holiday-related pause in production until at least mid-January in the hope that the number of new cases would subside by then, freeing up space in hospitals and intensive care units.By Monday night, “The Late Late Show” announced in a tweet that it had moved its production back into James Corden’s garage until it was “safe to return to our studio.” And a spokeswoman for “Jimmy Kimmel Live” confirmed a Deadline report that the Los Angeles-based late show would film remotely for the next two weeks. Officials from the groups calling for a pause — which also included a committee representing commercial advertisers and advertising agencies — said that they were encouraging their members to stay at home and not accept any on-set employment for several weeks. They noted that even workers who do not contract the virus put themselves at risk of becoming injured by stunts, falls or other mishaps, and that they could find it difficult to get treatment at hospitals.“It is too hard to say right now when the situation may improve,” said David White, national executive director of SAG-AFTRA.The Producers Guild of America said in its own statement that it was encouraging everyone “to delay production until the county health officials indicate it’s safe to resume.”Like sports, theater and much of the entertainment industry, film and television production has been forced to endure a turbulent year of stops and starts. The pandemic caused what was essentially a global shutdown in March, followed by a gradual phased reopening over the summer with a laundry list of new safety protocols in place that forced executives to reimagine how to make blockbuster movies safely, or how to finish uncompleted television seasons.The measures they have taken could not entirely stop the spread of the virus, however, and throughout the summer and fall, stars including Robert Pattinson and Dwayne Johnson tested positive. Mr. Pattinson’s positive test forced filming of “The Batman” at studios outside London to shut down. And last month, an audio recording of Tom Cruise emerged in which the actor could be heard scolding crew members on the set of “Mission: Impossible 7” for not following Covid-19 protocols.The restart, uneven and incomplete, has also forced the industry to slash budgets and lay off employees. FilmLA, the official film office for the city and county of Los Angeles, reported that filming in the area fell by more than 54 percent from July to September compared with the same period the previous year. (In New York City, only 35 of the nearly 80 series that were filming or planning to film were back at work by early November.)Then came the wave of infections that have staggered California since Thanksgiving. More than 35,000 new cases were reported in the state on Sunday, and the weekly average of new cases per day in Los Angeles County exceeded 16,000 last week — roughly 12 times higher than it was averaging on Nov. 1.The crisis has stretched the health care system so thin that at one Los Angeles hospital, incoming patients were recently being instructed to wait in an outdoor tent because the lobby was being used to treat patients, and gurneys filled the gift shop.The lack of hospital capacity prompted public health officials in Los Angeles to reach out to some members of the production industry on Dec. 24 to ask them to “strongly consider pausing work for a few weeks during this catastrophic surge in Covid cases,” FilmLA said. (An official at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said only that it had “recommended a voluntary pause on production activities” during a phone call with industry officials, but did not specify a time frame.)A database maintained by the county health department lists locations tied to CBS, NBC, Netflix and Warner Bros. as among the more than 500 workplaces, restaurants and stores that have reported three or more positive coronavirus cases. Officials for the studios declined to comment on the record.With the standard holiday break now expanded until mid-January because of the surge in cases and concerns about hospital capacity in Los Angeles, several shows that had been slated to resume production this week will not return until next week at the earliest, officials said.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      Actors Sue SAG-AFTRA Health Plan Over Changes in Insurance

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Best of 2020Best TV ShowsBest DanceBest TheatreBest AlbumsAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyActors Sue SAG-AFTRA Health Plan Over Changes in InsuranceEd Asner, a seven-time Emmy winner, is the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles on Tuesday; it includes nine other participants.Ed Asner, who is 91, would  lose coverage when SAG-AFTRA Health Plan changes take effect in 2021 because he will not reach a new earnings threshold, the lawsuit says.Credit…Rachel Luna/Getty ImagesBy More