Labor dispute erupts over 'The Hobbit' [updated]

All is not peaceful in the Shire.

Even before "The Hobbit" has begun production, a labor dispute has cast a cloud over the two-picture project, pitting producer Peter Jackson against various performer unions, including the Screen Actors Guild.

SAG has joined six other unions who represent performers in the UK, Canada and Australia, in advising their members to not work on this "non-union production."

In a jointly signed statement, the unions said producers of the film refused to negotiate a union contract for actors on the films, which are being readied to be shot in New Zealand. Warner Bros. and its New Line Cinema unit are producing the films that are co-owned with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The studios are currently sorting out rights and financing issues in the hope of beginning production in the first quarter of next year so that the movies can be completed in time for a 2012 holiday release.

The boycott is being led by the International Federation of Actors on behalf of a group of actors in New Zealand seeking union contracts that would provide them with minimum wages and residual payments.

Jackson has fired back, accusing an actors group in New Zealand of making unreasonable demands that could force the production, the prequel story to the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, to shut down or move to Europe, "endangering a project that hundreds of people have worked on over the last two years," he wrote in a statement. Presumably, if SAG stuck to its guns, that would prevent stars such as Ian McKellen and Cate Blanchett, who played Gandalf and Galadriel, respectively, in "Lord of the Rings," from working on "The Hobbit."

"I'm not anti-union the slightest," Jackson added.

Jackson blasted an Australian union that has been seeking to negotiate on behalf of the New Zealand actors, saying it had no legal standing in his country and was seeking to gain a foothold in New Zealand's production industry.

"It feels like we have a large Aussie cousin kicking sand in our eyes," he wrote.

[Update, 8:38 p.m.: New Line, Warner Bros. and MGM issued the following joint statement on the controversy:

New Line, Warner Bros. Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures are concerned by the recent allegations of unfair treatment of actors in New Zealand and instructions from the performers’ guilds to their membership to withhold services from the producers of “The Hobbit” in New Zealand.   We are proud to have good relations with all of those performers’ guilds and value their contribution to the motion pictures produced in their respective jurisdictions throughout the world.  But we believe that in this case the allegations are baseless and unfair to Peter Jackson and his team in Wellington who have been tireless supporters of the New Zealand motion picture community.

To classify the production as "non-union" is inaccurate.  The cast and crew are being engaged under collective bargaining agreements where applicable and we are mindful of the rights of those individuals pursuant to those agreements. And while we have previously worked with MEAA, an Australian union now seeking to represent actors in New Zealand, the fact remains that there cannot be any collective bargaining with MEAA on this New Zealand production, for to do so would expose the production to liability and sanctions under New Zealand law.  This legal prohibition has been explained to MEAA. We are disappointed that MEAA has nonetheless continued to pursue this course of action.

Motion picture production requires the certainty that a production can reasonably proceed without disruption and it is our general policy to avoid filming in locations where there is potential for work force uncertainty or other forms of instability.  As such, we are exploring all alternative options in order to protect our business interests.]

-- Richard Verrier

Photo: Gandalf (Ian McKellen) guides Frodo (Elijah Wood) through the caverns of Middle-earth in "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring." Credit: Pierre Vinet / New Line Cinema.

Comments

[jefcostello]

Once again the hack unions take work away from others. I though these Hollywood leftists are all about caring for others and being open minded? I guess that only applies to other peoples money. What a bunch of phonies, and the Hollywood leftists wonder why the industry is deflating. I'm sure Hussein and his Marxist clowns will come to the rescue with a bail out for SAG and the other thugs organizations. Thanks for destroying America unions and leftists, you are to blame, and Nov. 2 will prove how hated you all are.

[Michael Sweeney]

People use blanket labels like 'Hollywood Leftists" when they have no idea what they're talking about.

[innercity]

Will everyone else working on the film - the gaffers, art department crew, wardrobe assistants, production assistants - be equally protected? If not, this whole Actors Union point of view is a sham and does not speak for all workers.

Very very tiresome that actors feel they need special treatment above all the other departments. If guilds do not yet exist for all crafts and artists working on films, they should.

[the big e]

There are local guilds in NZ for the crew and the union is talking with them about what is going on and there is genuine concern for everyone who stands to win and lose with this project filming in NZ. It is funny the talk of special treatment for actors when at the moment the NZ union simply would like to have a meeting. Currently it is being told by the production company and the local Producers association (SPADA) that it doesn't even exist or that they are puppets in some vast powerplay from off shore! NZ has always had a very collaborative industry 99% of cast and crew have often worked for nothing or next to nothing just because a particular project was worth while or someone is starting out or someone needed a favor - over time is regularly thrown in for free. It works together because everyone knows it is small and we need to help each other out. To be denied the chance to even have a conversation about the terms and conditions of your employment and those around you, most would agree, never mind your political leanings, is simply not fair