Adam Driver, Jessica Chastain to attend Venice Film Festival despite SAG-AFTRA strike

The SAG-AFTRA strike started in July by the Hollywood actors to attain better compensation from film studios. This, coupled with the Writer’s Guild of America strike, has halted the production and promotion of the upcoming films or television shows. Despite this, actors Adam Driver, Jessica Chastain, and Mads Mikkelsen among others will be heading off to attend the Venice Film Festival. 

3 things you need to know: 

• The SAG-AFTRA strike started on July 14, 2023. 
• Several upcoming films and TV shows have been delayed due to the strike. 
• Actors are barred from promoting their upcoming films as long as the strike is ongoing. 

Are Adam Driver and others promoting their films?

Adam Driver, Jessica Chastain, Mads Mikkelsen, Caleb Landry Jones and others will be attending the film festival. This was confirmed by the festival representatives, as per Variety. While Driver will be attending for his film Ferrari with director Michael Mann, Chastain will be in attendance for her film Memory with filmmaker Michel Franco. 

_{(Adam Driver as Enzo Ferrari in a first-look still from the upcoming film Ferrari | Image: X)}

The Casino Royale actor Mikkelsen is going to be a part of the festival to represent The Promised Land with Danish director Nikolaj Arcel. The reason these films are still being premiered at the festival is that they have got an interim waiver from SAG-AFTRA. These are independent films and not produced by any AMPTP members. 

When is Venice Film Festival taking place?

The Venice Film Festival will be taking place from August 30 and will run till September 9, 2023. The 80th edition of the festival will open with Edoardo De Angelis’ Comandante. The many significant entries in the festival’s official selection include David Fincher’s The Killer, Yorgo Lanthimos’ Poor Things and Evil Does Not Exist by Ryusuke Hamaguchi.