# What powers do hollywood union(s) hold?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-do-hollywood-union-s-hold/297388>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 2, 2005, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-do-hollywood-union-s-hold/297388 "2005-04-02T09:48:55Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Bill\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a5b964/32.png) [@Bill\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_H)\
**Post date:** [April 2, 2005, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-do-hollywood-union-s-hold/297388/1 "2005-04-02T09:48:55Z")

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Robert Rodriguez dropped out of the Directors union because they threatened to shut his film down for violating their rules. What powers do they actually have?

Presumably, they could force a strike by other workers, true? Are pretty much all movie jobs unionized and accountable to either the same union or tightly-intertwined unions?

Do they also have agreements or leverage over distribution companies or other key players? What other leverage do they hold?

Supposedly, Quentin Tarrentino isn’t a member of the Directors union either. How is he able to make movies without harassment? It can’t be that he makes movies with no union members. He’s got plenty of big names and I’m sure they must be unionized.

What pressures befall someone in the industry that doesn’t want to affiliate with the union(s)? If an actor for example wants to be non-union, can he get roles? Or do unions dictate that all acting roles go to union workers?

Thanks.

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**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\
**Post date:** [April 2, 2005, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-do-hollywood-union-s-hold/297388/2 "2005-04-02T15:32:47Z")

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IIRC, Rodriguez quit the DGA when they wouldn’t give Frank Miller a co-directing credit on “Sin City.” As a result, Rodriguez had to give up directing “John Carter of Mars” because Paramount requires its directors to be DGA members (longstanding agreement with the DGA.)

Several directors are non-DGA, most famously George Lucas, who quit after they fined him for not putting opening credits on “Star Wars.” (The original, aka A New Hope.)

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**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\
**Post date:** [April 2, 2005, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-do-hollywood-union-s-hold/297388/3 "2005-04-02T16:00:06Z")

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I wonder, then, how accurate the events in “The Godfather \*” could be were they real?

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**Author:** ![Bill\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a5b964/32.png) [@Bill\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_H)\
**Post date:** [April 3, 2005, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-powers-do-hollywood-union-s-hold/297388/4 "2005-04-03T04:57:53Z")

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Thanks, **brianjedi**.

Any other info, anyone?