Hollywood Moves Forward with Production Plans Amidst the Pandemic

As coronavirus cases continue to rise in the United States, the reopening of several industries has been pushed back. However, it looks like Hollywood plans to reopen as per its production plans even amidst the ongoing pandemic. According to sources in states such as New York, Georgia, and California, the movies and TV shows that had its production plans in place are moving ahead with them respectively. It has, however, been reported that principal photography with regards to most of the domestic projects will remain suspended for the next few months. Up until now, the scenario has been such that most of the filming of Hollywood projects has been taking place at international locations due to the condition of the COVID-19 cases in the United States.

The government’s decision to halt most of the indoor businesses did raise questions about the future of Hollywood productions, but no news has yet been provided about the reversal of their decision regarding opening Hollywood’s doors of production. An official state document also made it clear that anyone who supports the entertainment industries, such as the studios and various other establishments, are counted as essential workers, especially when they maintain the health guidelines and rules of social distancing within the pandemic.

The State of Hollywood Productions at the Moment

FilmLA, which tracks permits related to the entertainment industry, said a couple of weeks ago that it was receiving about 60 film applications every single week, and that most of these applications belong to the commercial and advertising sectors. The production of Tyler Perry’s BET dramedy, Sistas, for instance, was scheduled to begin shooting on July 14, but got delayed by a day due to the time it took for the COVID-19 results to come in, which serves as an example of what production companies might have to face while working as the coronavirus cases continue to rise.

Netflix’s Stranger Things will reportedly return to the state in September, and the online streaming platform also plans on speeding up the process to finish up Red Notice, which is an action thriller starring Dwayne Johnson. The actor is reportedly looking forward to begin working in his home state, and the plans include him finishing Red Notice before beginning with his next movie, Black Adam. Hollywood’s production plans are shaping up in other states as well. New York, for example, recently entered the fourth phase of recovery from COVID-19, thereby allowing TV and film productions to happen with fewer restrictions. Projects are allowed to move forward on the condition that no more than 50 people be physically present on sets. The other conditions include not interfering with the medical facilities, not blocking the streets, and not getting too close to any restaurants that have outdoor seating without prior permission from the establishment in question.

As far as the situation in Chicago is concerned, the fourth installment of the Emmy-winning limited series, Fargo, will resume filming in the middle of August after having been forced to halt production during the beginning of the pandemic. The cast and crew will not only be tested before production resumes, but also on the set, after which a seven-day quarantine period will take place. There’s also the plan of having two crews in place, so that if one falls sick, they can carry on with production with the other crew.