For the past three months, the 2023 WGA writers strike has been in effect, leaving tons of Hollywood productions at a standstill and writers without jobs as they fight for their demands of Hollywood studios on the picket line. As actors joined the cause with the SAG-AFTRA strike a few weeks ago, Oscar-nominee Colin Farrell was seen with his peers in Los Angeles this week, and he spoke up about shutting down production on The Penguin.
Colin Farrell gave a transformative performance in 2022’s The Batman as The Penguin. Now, the actor is set to return for a streaming spinoff called The Penguin which follows the Gotham character one week after the events of the Robert Pattinson-led film. Production started in New York City back in March until the WGA writers strike ultimately shut down production just two months later. As Farrell walked the picket line with fellow actors earlier this week, he said this about his upcoming DC show:
I was doing a show in New York that rightfully shut down. Six hundred and fifty crew members. Now I’ve been in touch with a few of them and they are struggling to pay their mortgage, they are going to have to remortgage. They’re thinking about Christmas already, it’s already fucking August. What are they gonna get their kids? It’s terrible and what’s being asked of the studios is not that much. What’s being asked, per studio when it comes to pass, is something along the lines of 30 or 40 million is really ridiculous and change needs to happen. It needs to happen now.
Farrell’s words come via a TikTok where he can be seen wearing a “SAG-AFTRA STRONG” shirt alongside fellow actors and holding up a picket sign in one hand. Check it out:
@moviemaniacs Colin Farrell goes on strike
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‘The Batman’ Cast Interviews | Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Colin Farrell And More!
Farrell joins a growing list of major actors who have been seen on the picket line in recent days, including Sarah Silverman, Daniel Radcliffe, Rosario Dawson and Aubrey Plaza, to name a few. His words from the strike highlight just how many people are affected when a single production shuts down, and how it’s already impacting the finances of the folks who make movies and television shows possible.
Considering The Penguin was expected to continue filming for three to four more months, Batman fans with a Max subscription will have to wait an extended period of time before checking out Farrell’s limited series focused on The Penguin. Along with Farrell starring, The Penguin cast list also includes Cristin Milioti, Michael Zegen, Clancy Brown, Rhenzy Feliz, Michael Kelly and Shohreh Aghdashloo among other actors. The series was created by Lauren LeFranc and executive produced by Colin Farrell along with The Batman's writer/director Matt Reeves. A trailer for The Penguin came out back in April and the series was initially intended to be released in 2024.
As the Hollywood strikes continue, Colin Farrell certainly isn’t afraid to picket and bring light to the current situation in Hollywood in hopes of changes being made by studios moving forward.
