Peter Bart: Hollywood Is Partying And Awards Are Flowing, But A Dicey Jobs Outlook Cues Actor Angst
deadline.com“I despise auditions,” Marlon Brando barked as he launched into the audition for his role in The Godfather. It was his idea, I reminded him, so he himself had caused his actors angst, not the studio. (It was, of course, a great audition.) Actors’ angst was much in evidence yet again last weekend at the SAG Awards.
Brilliant performances were being honored, formidable talent was on display, and Barbra Streisand clearly owned the room. But the evening had a problematic subtext: The anticipated turnaround in job opportunities hadn’t happened across Hollywood.
The epoch of “peak TV” seems to be drifting away, with words like “contraction” echoing in the trade. To be sure, none of this inhibited SAG honorees from thanking their casting directors for their good picks and even endorsing the Academy’s decision to create a new entity: a casting branch. RELATED: Casting Society Sets Its Artios Awards Film Nominations SAG-AFTRA‘s 160,000 members also must face the reality, however, that the job market is tightening, not expanding.
Hollywood has been partying through award season, but box office trackers report a 17% decline from last year and the Wall Street Journal sums it up with “high hopes but slow start.” Still, a wide array of projects are underway, with actors, like Brando, eagerly auditioning for roles. “Casting directors are now playing an essential role,” the Academy reminds us in announcing the new branch.
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