VENICE: Adam Driver said Thursday that he backed the Hollywood strikes and that his new indie film "Ferrari", premiering in Venice, showed big studios it is possible to treat actors and writers better.
Driver, 39, is one of the few stars able to attend the Venice Film Festival because the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) made an interim agreement allowing independent films to continue their promotional work.
"Why is it that a smaller distribution company like Neon and STX International (which funded 'Ferrari') can meet the dream demands of what (the Screen Actors Guild) is asking for... when a big company like Netflix and Amazon can't?" he told reporters ahead of the film's premiere.
Driver plays Enzo Ferrari, the racing car driver who founded the iconic Italian brand.
"I'm here to stand in solidarity with (the unions) by showing up, and just further proving the point that it really is about supporting the people that you make it with," he said.
"Ferrari" is directed by Michael Mann ("Heat", "Collateral") and is among 23 films competing for the Golden Lion in Venice.
Mann said everyone on the crew stood in "total solidarity" with the strikers, which included actors as well as the Writers Guild of America.
"'Ferrari' got made because the people who worked on Ferrari made it by forgoing large percentages of salaries, in the case of Adam and myself, and producers working basically for no fees," he said.
"No big studio wrote us a cheque, and that's why we can stand here in solidarity with both unions."
Writers and actors have brought Hollywood to a standstill, primarily over concerns about pay in the streaming era and the potential use of AI technology.