Zachary Levi Jokes It's 'So Dumb' He Can't Talk About Past Hollywood Projects During Strike
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Zachary Levi recently appeared in front of fans at Manchester Comic-Con as the Screen Actors Guild's strike continues
Zachary Levi is joking about his inability to discuss his film and TV career during the ongoing Hollywood actors' strike.
On Thursday, a clip from 42-year-old Levi's recent appearance at Manchester Comic-Con in the United Kingdom surfaced on TikTok. The video shows the Shazam! star laughing as he addresses SAG-AFTRA's strike rules, saying, "I’m not allowed to talk about — this is so dumb — I’m not allowed to talk about any of my previous work."
Levi then appeared to reference his two Shazam! movies, his work on the television series Chuck and his role in the 2010 animated film Tangled.
"I’m not allowed to talk about movies that I may be a superhero in," Levi said. "I’m not allowed to talk about TV shows that I made that I’m a nerd who worked at a Best Buy [kind of place]… I’m not allowed to talk about any animated princess movies that I was fantastic in as the best prince ever. I’m not allowed to talk about those things.”
In a statement obtained by PEOPLE Friday, Levi said the comment has been taken out of context and reaffirmed his support for actors and writers currently on strike.
“It’s come to my attention that an offhand remark I made in jest last weekend is being taken out of context. So let me be very clear. I fully support my union, the WGA, and the strike," Levi said. "I remain an outspoken critic of the exploitative system that us artists are subject to work in since I started my journey in this business 25 years ago."
Related: SAG Strike Rules: What Hollywood Actors Can and Can’t Do Until a Resolution Is Reached
The actors' strike entered its third week on Thursday, while Hollywood writers have been on strike since May. Levi said in his statement that he believes the strike "is necessary to protect ourselves, our writers, and all those working in production who make the industry move."
"But we also cannot forget our fans during this strike. Fans that spend their money and energy traveling far distances to talk with us about our work that means so much to them, we should be able to engage," he added. "Our business exists and succeeds because of the fans, and I think it’s imperative we appreciate them for their support of our careers.”
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The actor previously shared strong support for the strike during an Instagram live stream just days after the strike began in July.
In the video, Levi noted that issues regarding residual pay and artificial intelligence are major concerns for the guild as he explained to his social media followers that “what’s at stake here is not just a bunch of privileged people trying to hold on to their privilege.”
“[Studio executives] do not care about human life. They do not care about life in general. They care about profits. It’s always profits over people and not the other way around," Levis said at the time. "So mark my words, if we don’t do something drastic — right now we are doing something drastic and we need to be doing this very drastic thing. We need to be striking."
SAG-AFTRA's strike rules prevent actors both from promoting new projects and making appearances in which they promote "any project that was made under the TV/theatrical agreement,” as the guild's chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland said at a July 13 press conference.
Without an end to either strike in sight, the 2023 Emmy Awards have been delayed from its original scheduled Sept. 18 date, while some studios have began to push back movie releases into 2024 in hopes the strike will end by the new year.
Levi most recently appeared in Shazam! Fury of the Gods and Harold and the Purple Crayon. He will next appear in filmmaker Robert Rodriguez's Spy Kids: Armageddon, which premieres on Netflix Sept. 22.
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