The 'Devil Wears Prada' actress reportedly decides to pull the plug on the Vanity Fair cover shoot when she's informed that members of SAG-AFTRA join the Conde Nast picketers to protest layoffs.
- Jan 24, 2024
AceShowbiz - Anne Hathaway has shown support to unionized Conde Nast staffers who are protesting layoffs. The actress has walked out of a Vanity Fair cover shoot in solidarity with Conde Nast Union work stoppage.
According to reports, the Oscar winner arrived at the shoot in New York on Tuesday morning, January 23. The photo shoot was not violating any union guidelines and the actress and her team had done their due diligence and were initially given a green light for the shoot.
The "Les Miserables" star was still in hair and makeup when her team was notified by a staffer from SAG-AFTRA that members of her union joined a one-day walk out in solidarity with unionized Conde Nast staffers. Anne then decided to walked off the shoot, causing some confusion.
"They hadn't even started taking photos yet," a source tells Variety. "Once Anne was made aware of what was going on, she just got up from hair and makeup and left."
A source tells Page Six that the exit wasn't dramatic, but "people were like, 'WTF is happening?' " Word spread at the studio that the Hollywood star walked off the shoot "because of something to do with SAG and the Conde Nast strike."
The strike comes after Conde Nast said it would lay off approximately 5% of its staff following the merge of Pitchfork and men's magazine GQ. The workers are protesting management's "unlawful bargaining tactics during layoff negotiations."
Anna Wintour, Conde Nast's chief content officer and global editorial director of Vogue, explained the changes in a memo to company staff, writing, "Today we are evolving our Pitchfork team structure by bringing the team into the GQ organization. This decision was made after a careful evaluation of Pitchfork's performance and what we believe is the best path forward for the brand so that our coverage of music can continue to thrive within the company."
The Conde Nast Union announced its potential walkout plans last Thursday on X, formerly Twitter, "Our longest yeah boy ever: Nearly 400 of us have pledged to STOP WORK when our bargaining committee calls for a 24 hour walk out. RT to tell @CondeNast you stand with workers: stop breaking the law, stop union busting, and stop the layoffs. Keep your eyes here for more soon."
The work stoppage took place on Tuesday morning at 8:30 A.M. ET. Employees at Vanity Fair, Vogue, GQ, Allure, Conde Nast Entertainment, Architectural Digest, Glamour, Self, Teen Vogue and other Conde Nast publications walked to hold a rally in front of the company's offices in New York.
After Anne walked out of the photo session, SAG-AFTRA posted a statement from its national exec director Duncan Crabtree-Ireland that said, "Conde Nast workers have the backing of SAG-AFTRA... We applaud these workers taking action to defend their livelihoods, and we encourage everyone to recognize the Conde Nast picket line and join us in supporting this promising new era of worker empowerment."
The shoot is now reportedly rescheduled for another day.
