Usually, we’d be seeing Jamie Lee Curtis and the cast of Disney’s new Haunted Mansion movie promoting the heck out of one of the year’s big upcoming Disney movies, which hits theaters next weekend. Instead, Hollywood actors are striking over labor disputes with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Amidst her Haunted Mansion co-star Rosario Dawson picketing on the ground recently, Curtis is shouting her out in support.
Jamie Lee Curtis took to Instagram to post a video of Rosario Dawson sharing that she’s striking so that she doesn’t have to live off ramen “for the rest” of her life. Check out the sweet shoutout from Curtis:
Curtis handed off the microphone to Dawson, who came in hot with a solid point that if actors were not given rights to residuals and so forth, she wouldn’t be able to make a living in the industry. Dawson said “those contracts need to be updated” while holding a picket sign and striking with fellow actors.
Her Haunted Mansion costar underlined the point on social media by sharing it and saying she’s telling it like it “was and is for the majority of actors.” The truth of the matter is that being an actor doesn’t necessarily amount to the big bucks, and as the SAG-AFTRA strike continues this week, more actors are speaking out about the problems happening behind-the-scenes in the industry. Here’s a round of photos from Dawson’s picketing:
The Hollywood union strikes began with the WGA Writers Strike, which kicked off on May 2 for writers and continues today. Since last week, actors have been striking as well, effectively shutting down tons of movies and television shows that were previously in production.
As actors continue to strike, they cannot promote their projects, including Haunted Mansion. Over the weekend, Walt Disney Studios held a premiere at Disneyland for the movie without its actors. Director Justin Simien and some producers attended the event, along with Disney characters walking the red carpet as well, but overall, it was a bit of a ghost town of a premiere.
Per Curtis’ post, she only hinted that Dawson is a “colleague in the haunting tale,” whereas if Hollywood wasn’t in a strike, surely the actress would be all over letting the people know about her Disney project. Haunted Mansion’s first audience reactions were published last year, with many applauding the film for it being a fun, emotional and actually rather scary adaptation of the beloved Disneyland ride.
Of course, this Haunted Mansion movie follows a previous one from 2003 starring Eddie Murphy. You can check out the upcoming release starring not only Jamie Lee Curtis and Rosario Dawson, but Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, LaKeith Stanfield, Danny DeVito and Jared Leto in Haunted Mansion, in theaters on July 28.
