For whatever reason, this became about “The Hobbit”, and became about Sir Peter Jackson. Unfortunately, the dispute escalated until somebody decided to place a ban on signing up for the movie until it was resolved. This had to be the most serious error of judgement in this whole sorry affair.

I would just like to mention for a moment, the motives of overseas unions in influencing or supporting this decision.
Unlike other industries, actors in Australia or the USA actually compete with NZ actors for work. It is actually in the best interests of overseas actors for the industry to collapse in another country. As a result, the motives of the Australians (or any others) in supporting (or even suggesting) the boycott, are very suspect.
Whoever really made that decision, it was made. It had to be the most outrageous example of one group over-playing their hand, in any industrial setting I have heard of.
They were not holding a local manufacturer to ransom. They were antagonising a worldwide conglomerate, which was planning on filming in NZ only as a favour to Sir Peter. They would not give a second thought to using a more amenable workforce, in another country.
So, not only have the unions involved embarrassed themselves, they have weakened the positions of their members dramatically.

Let me make a prediction. Filming in this country has never been in jeopardy. There, I’ve stuck my head above the wall and said it.

By the local union making this stupid and unsupportable demand, they have handed complete control of the dispute over to Sir Peter Jackson. He can now say that the entire project has been put in jeopardy. He can invite people from Warner Brothers on a junket to visit NZ, and ask them to act angry and distrustful, and to pretend that they are here to decide on our future as a filming destination.
Added to that, the government is running scared by this situation as well. They are offering to change employment law, to remove the actors’ ability to negotiate with any strength at all. No National government has ever been supportive of the union movement, and this has just played into their hands. The lawmakers will happily castrate any union that Sir Peter tells them to, to ensure that the movie stays here. They will probably throw in some extra tax breaks to boot.

But it was always going to stay here.
Sir Peter Jackson wants to make his movies down here. His production company is down here. His family is down here. He’s a very, very big fish down here. He is also very very influential when it comes to any Tolkien movie. Nobody would make the Hobbit without him, especially when it will be the most expensive movie ever made. His touch is gold right now. If he wants it made here, it will be. He now has the government in his pocket, and the actors under his heel.
I apologise to Sir Peter if my cynicism makes him sound tyrannical, because clearly he is not. But he is a businessman. He will do whatever is necessary to ensure things are done the way he wants. That’s business. He has worked very hard to get where he is, and he certainly deserves it. As New Zealanders we are justifiably proud of what he has achieved, and we are now all behind him in repelling these damned communist unions, who want to hold everybody to ransom.
This was a gift to Sir Peter. The actors clearly had no clue what they were doing. If they were cajoled or supported by the Australians, then more fool them. Any chance of improving conditions for their work has just been put back decades.
In fact, if they don’t back-pedal very quickly, the entire union movement in NZ will be in jeopardy.

NUFF SAID. Seems the NZ Equity group will do more harm for future movies IMO. Bad Idea considering that there has never been anyone who has come close to getting NZ actors and actresses to work like PJ.