Disney theme park characters replaced actors at the 'Haunted Mansion' premiere after the cast skipped the event due to strike action.

The film was unveiled at a glitzy red carpet bash at Disneyland in California on Saturday (15.97.23) but castmembers including Jamie Lee Curtis, Tiffany Haddish, Rosario Dawson and Danny Devito were absent after the announcement of strikes by the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) acting unions.

None of the film's stars attended the premiere and the red carpet was instead walked by theme park workers dressed as iconic Disney characters.

Director Justin Simien did attend the premiere and he told The Hollywood Reporter he supports the cast's decision to stay away. He said: “If they can’t be here to speak for it (the film), I felt like I had to be here to speak for it.

"It’s sad that they’re not here, at the same time, I totally support the reason why they’re not here. And I’m happy to be the one to ring the bell in their stead."

The strike guidelines prohibit actors from taking part in promotional appearances as well as on-camera work meaning they are unable to attend events like premieres, awards shows or film festivals as well as being unable to take part in interviews or podcasts.

The industrial action was announced on Thursday (13.07.23) after negotiations between between the unions and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers broke down on Wednesday (12.07.23) night.

The news prompted the cast of Christopher Nolan's new drama 'Oppenheimer' to walk out of the film's London premiere, with the director saying of the actors: "Unfortunately, they’re off to write their picket signs for what we believe to be an imminent strike by SAG, joining one of my guilds, the Writers Guild, in the struggle for fair wages for working members of the unions, and we support them."

The New York premiere of 'Oppenheimer' was set for Monday (17.07.23) but that has since been cancelled due to the strike action.