When we talk about Hollywood abroad, the issue isn’t limited to Donald Trump’s MAGA movement: beyond the wounded national pride over the relocation of productions, as studios seek to take advantage of tax breaks in Europe or Canada, there is in fact an American sector in difficulty because it isn’t working as well as it could. This is demonstrated by a bipartisan bill proposal, which a figure like Christopher Nolan has welcomed with great enthusiasm: the United States is preparing to roll out a nationwide tax credit plan… and for the countries that have hosted productions from the major studios there could be serious trouble. [Photo courtesy of Gnaphron, from Wikimedia Commons]
The federal tax credit lands in Hollywood, with cumulative tax relief from 20% to 30% on the way
This is the proposed bill, titled “Motion Picture, Television and Entertainment Revitalization Act,” which is hoped to become active as early as January 1, 2027, midterm elections permitting: if a film has a budget of at least $1 million and is shot at least 75% in the USA, it can benefit from a 20% tax credit, a reduction extendable in 5% increments up to a maximum total of 30% in the case of an independent production, or if it is shot in at least ten states of the Union, or if it is filmed in a rural area or a natural disaster zone (California will still be considered for the next five years). The credits would cover not only below-the-line costs (shooting, set construction, post-production), but also above-the-line costs, i.e., for the top talents such as the lead cast and the director. This is no small move: it could truly be a revolution. The urgency of the proposal came after the share of American-made films shot in the USA dipped in 2025 to 39%, triggering an emergency: there is certainly Trump-era MAGA pride behind this acceleration, but in reality, for decades unions and productions have worked to reach this hard-won goal. According to Indiewire, it was Jon Voight, as Trump’s adviser on the matter, who urged him to back away from the most exaggerated threats (such as a 100% tariff against anyone who produced films abroad), in favor of a more sensible path. Hollywood has recently and not-so-recently shot elsewhere to take advantage of generous tax credits in Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Eastern European countries: consider Zach Cregger’s recent Resident Evil, an American film in conception and authorship, but with Czech labor “below the line,” from shooting to digital post-production. The proposal is also cumulative, so the tax credit can be even combined with existing state-level reliefs, such as Georgia’s (you may have seen promotional logos in the end credits), yielding potentially enormous savings: as industry insiders note, since the proposed law is federal, not tied to specific states, it frees from the obligation to set the action in particular places simply because it is more convenient.
Too good to be true? Hollywood waits in anxious anticipation for approval, while countries around the world that previously benefited from the comparatively less favorable American conditions now fear losing massive investments, not to mention a possible opposite effect: the United States could even start attracting foreign productions! Christopher Nolan commented on the bill like this: “The most significant legislative effort in this generation to promote domestic film and television production, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs.” Nolan’s forecast aligns with the Motion Picture Association: in eight years, the United States could see the creation of about 143,500 additional jobs in the cinema-television sector, with investments rising by $125 billion.
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