A batch of movies with big name casts have been put on hold as a result of the Writers Guild strike. Angels & Demons, Shantaram, Nine and Pinkville are all being postponed until their scripts can be polished.

Johnny Depp was set to begin work on Shantaram this winter however the script and concerns over locations have put the movie on hold indefinitely. Variety reports Warner Bros will begin production on the film at the earliest possible date.

Rob Marshall's musical Nine with Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men) and Penelope Cruz (Volver) has also been put on hold due to problems with the script.

Shantaram and Nine are following in the footsteps of Angels & Demons and Pinkville, the first two big budget studio movies to announce delays in filming. Ron Howard was set to direct Tom Hanks in Angels & Demons and Oliver Stone was ready to go behind the camera again for Pinkville, however the scripts needed some work and the studios did not want to rush forward with production if there were still issues to be worked out.

The Writers Guild went on strike at 12:01am on November 5, 2007. Their work stoppage had an immediate affect on television shows, many of which shut down production within the first two weeks of the strike. WGA members are striking to get higher residuals on DVDs and for compensation on new media (internet, cell phones, etc).