Jack Nicholson and George Clooney among stars joining actor’s strike

HOLLYWOOD A-listers including George Clooney and Jack Nicholson are poised to join a strike that will bring Tinseltown to a standstill. Talks between the Screen Actors Guild union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have broken down. SAG last night urged members to support “strike authorisation”. A spokeswoman said: “We have already made difficult decisions and sacrifices in an attempt to reach an agreement. “It is time for members to stand united and empower the national negotiating committee to bargain with the strength of a possible work stoppage behind them. “Management continues to insist on terms we cannot possibly accept.” The union is expected to ballot its 120,000 members on strike action. For a walkout to go ahead 75 per cent will have to vote in favour. Entertainment giants NBC Universal last week announced that it was cutting £330million from its 2009 budget. Angelina Jolie, Ben Stiller, Holly Hunter and Viggo Mortensen are among other big names being asked for their support. It is the second major industrial dispute to hit Hollywood this year. Screen writers staged a 100-day strike which shut down production of dozens of TV shows and cost the Los Angeles economy an estimated £1.69billion. If the stoppage goes ahead, next year’s Oscars ceremony may have to be shelved.

Source: Nov 23 2008 By Billy Paterson