As Hollywood grapples with a historic double strike in the wake of actors union SAG-AFTRA calling for strike action, a dark cloud may dim the glow of Hollywood star power disembarking at the Hotel Excelsior dock.

According to multiple sources – many of whom declined to be quoted – SAG-AFTRA rules will prohibit members from carrying out any promotional activity for past, present and future projects. With some insiders predicting the actors strike will continue until early fall, it’s likely that Venice, which runs from Aug. 30 to Sept. 9, will be in the crosshairs.

“The titles around Venice are star-driven,” said one senior PR source. “You need the actor shots for Venice because there are famous photos of them coming in on the boats, and it’s such an important platform for future awards titles. A lot of  competition titles are director-driven, so it wouldn’t necessarily affect the films’ awards future, but it would lose some of that glamor,” he added.

But the actors strike could be resolved in as early as a few weeks, but that “it’s still going to be a total shit show at Venice and Toronto.”

For Venice, it’s a wait-and-see situation. “We hope that, in the interests of the entire audio-visual industry, the parties will reach an agreement quickly,” the fest’s parent organization, the Venice Biennale, said in a statement. But the prospects that the SAG-AFTRA strike will subside before the Lido launches are grim.

Last year, out of 73 feature films from 56 countries in the festival’s official selection, only dozen entries had ties to U.S. majors, streamers or indie studios such as A24.   

But Venice’s positioning as a major launch pad for Oscar season — and thus its crucial connection to Hollywood — is undeniable.

Last year, 9 out of the 23 competition titles were from the U.S. , with many A-listers at the festival.

Venice as Oscar Predictor

Luca Guadagnino’s sports comedy “Challengers,” starring Zendaya, Josh O’Connor and Mike Faist, which will open the festival on Aug. 30. The full lineup will be announced on July 25.

Besides “Challengers,” other potential Oscar contenders could include Michael Mann’s “Ferrari” toplining Adam Driver and Penelope Cruz, which Neon has acquired for domestic; Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla Presley biopic “Priscilla” for A24, starring Cailee Spaeny as Elvis Presley’s wife, and Jacob Elordi as the iconic singer.

Two Netflix titles include Bradley Cooper’s Leonard Bernstein biopic Maestro and David Fincher’s The Killer, which is slated on the streamer November 10.

The question is whether U.S. studios delay their Oscar-season launches for what may be a relatively brief time gap caused by the strike. Sources suggest Hollywood marketing machines are going to mount the campaigns they’re capable of under the circumstances. One scenario could mean that U.S. movies will head to the Lido with their directors in tow.

It may well be that the directors take up the workload. After all, many of Venice’s competition titles generally feature top auteurs who are enough of a draw entirely on their own.

But how many directors would want to be there without their talent. It’s up for discussion.”

Venice Fest impacted by strike action could be tantamount to the pandemic edition of 2020, which featured only a handful of American delegates and talent on the Lido. The difference was that actors were still able to promote their movies via Zoom.