Crew members on the upcoming gun violence-themed drama The Gun on Second Street are striking the ongoing production in an attempt to establish a union contract.
On Thursday the union IATSE said that a “majority” of the approximately 40-member crew walked off the set of the film in the Wheeling area of West Virginia that morning. So far the film’s producers have declined to voluntarily recognize the union, per IATSE.
With the walkoff, the crew is attempting to ink a contract to establish union-mandated wages and health and pension benefits, according to IATSE. The union also alleged that workers on the production “have been misclassified as 1099 independent contractors rather than employees.”
The Gun on Second Street is written and directed by Rohit Karn Batra, who previously directed 2019’s crime drama Line of Descent starring Brendan Fraser and Ronit Roy.
In a statement, producers of the film said they do not agree with the union’s assertions. “We have compensated our production crew well for their time,” they added. “However, we will not attempt to resolve our differences with the union through the press. Therefore, we have no further comment.”
The film has been described in press reports as an examination of gun violence in the U.S. through the tale of an accidental shooting. Years after a police officer mistakenly kills his partner while responding to a domestic violence call, he falls in love with the man’s widow and must reckon with his past.
Democratic Congressman and California governor hopeful Rep. Eric Swalwell is executive producing the film. Before the strike, so was Sean Penn, whose shingle Projected Picture Works was producing with Batra’s The Film Compartment. Dianna Agron, Jack Kesy and Tom Arnold are starring in the film, which does have a SAG-AFTRA union contract for performers, said IATSE (THR has asked SAG-AFTRA for comment).
In a statement, Swalwell said he got involved in the film after sharing personal law enforcement stories with Batra but never invested or was involved in the film’s business decisions.
“However, I am a lifelong supporter of labor,” he continued. “While I am prohibited by Congressional ethics rules from participating in the negotiations between production and labor, I joined the film expecting labor standards would be adhered to. I urge the production team to seek a fair outcome for the crew. Should that not be achieved, I will remove my name from the film’s screen credits.”
Penn’s Projected Picture Works said in a statement that the company and its partners were removing their names from the project. “We are supporters of fair labor practices and organized labor, and we agreed to lend our names to this project with the expectation that all standards would be respected and followed,” the company said. “It’s our hope that the production team responsible for the film will resolve this matter quickly, fairly, and responsibly with its crew and union leadership.”
“Every production, regardless of budget or political connections, must respect the rights of the people who make film and television possible,” IATSE international president Matthew Loeb said in a statement. “The Alliance is prepared to support this crew as they take collective action to secure safe working conditions, fair compensation, proper classification and a voice on the job.”
Dec. 18, 3:07 p.m. Updated with statement from producers.
Dec. 19, 10:10 a.m. Updated with Projected Picture Works statement.
