Brad Pitt, Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lawrence were among the 160,000 actors who voted in favor of the strike.

Brad Pitt, Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lawrence were among the 160,000 actors who voted in favor of the strike. In a decision that sends Hollywood into a virtual shutdown, actors’ union leaders confirmed the move Thursday night (7/13/23). This prompted the stars of Christopher Nolan’s war film ‘Oppenheimer’ to walk out of the film’s premiere after the move was announced.

“I have to give credit to our incredible cast led by Cillian Murphy,” the 52-year-old ‘The Dark Knight’ director said on stage as stars like Cillian Murphy, 47, left the screening in London.

“The list of (strikers) is big — Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Florence Buck, Kenneth Branagh, Rami Malek and others. You’ve seen them on the red carpet before. Unfortunately, they’re leaving now. We’re hoping for an immediate strike to write their strike boards. ,” he added.

If a strike is called, we’ll all be actors together and unite with everybody,” said Emily, 40, who announced she was walking out of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) premiere. ) endorsed the strike.

The move follows failed negotiations between representatives of SAG-AFTRA and streaming companies that failed to reach an agreement on the distribution of streaming profits and the potential impacts of using artificial intelligence to replace actors.

“Companies have refused to actively engage on some topics and blocked us completely on others,” said Fran Drescher, president of SAG-AFTRA.

The strike is feared to delay the production of most Hollywood film and television projects. Screenwriters are already on strike over pay and working conditions, the first time since 1960 that screenwriters and actors have gone on strike together.