Will The Hobbit leave New Zealand? It’s all up in the air at the moment, but from what Peter Jackson has said it’s seeming very feasible, despite the fact labour disputes have now been settled. The idea of taking the production out of the country was first mooted soon after New Zealand Actor’s Equity (which is run by the Aussie entertainment union, MEAA) launch a boycott of the movies, which lead numerous other unions around the world to tell their actors not to sign onto the films either.
The problem stemmed from the fact the makers of The Hobbit weren’t issuing New Zealand actors with official union contracts, and while the producer countered that it would be illegal to negotiate with the union, and that the deals offered were as good as members of other unions around the world were getting (they also suggested the whole thing was just a grab for power, as New Zealand Actor’s Equity only represents about 20% of actor’s in the country, and has little sway with producers), the union wasn’t having any of it. In the statement Peter Jackson released, he suggested the union’s actions could lead to Warner and MGM taking to production out of New Zealand and possibly to Eastern Europe.
However now it’s been announced that the labour dispute is over, with all the unions who were standing by the boycott sending out missives that actor’s may now accept work on the movies. But why did the boycott end? Well, according the the union, it was because they’d had positive talks with the group that oversees NZ producers, so nothing directly to do with The Hobbit, but it just as likely it’s because things were getting very ugly. A meeting of union top brass had to be called off a couple days ago, as over 1,000 potential film crew members, angry that they were potentially going to be out of two year’s steady work because of the boycott, protested outside. The NZ government had also weighed in, being critical of the union, and then Peter Jackson and his producing partners issued a statement yesterday, suggesting the union may have buggered things up even if they did end the boycott.
They said, “The damage inflicted on our film industry by [the actors unions] is long since done, and resolution of the union issue now does nothing to help the film stay in New Zealand… Next week Warners are coming down to New Zealand to make arrangements to move the production offshore. It appears we cannot make films in our own country even when substantial financing is available.
What’s uncertain is whether this was just another ploy to get the union to blink and remove the boycott (which they did), or whether the studios’ faith in New Zealand is now so shaken, that despite the end of the labour dispute, they still see it as too risky to spend $500 million in the country. The end of the boycott seems to be an emergency measure by the union, who had come realise the damage they were potentially doing, but the fact is, it may still be too late. It would be a shame if it did move, as the incredible New Zealand setting was one of Lord Of The Ring’s strongest points, but it appears it’s still possible The Hobbit may make Middle Earth look more Eastern European.
So will The Hobbit move? We’ll have to wait and see.