From Vanity Fair · Maxwell Adler · · 2m
Hollywood's sudden Trump truce
A federal film tax credit has turned Trump's loudest Hollywood critics into his most grateful allies.
In brief
A federal film tax credit has turned Trump's loudest Hollywood critics into his most grateful allies. When production jobs are on the line, Hollywood's institutions will trade their politics for a tax credit, even though the evidence that credits work is thin. Originally reported by Vanity Fair.
An old feud, on pause
Trump spent years calling the film industry racist and its movies dangerous for the country, while Hollywood leaders used him as their favorite antagonist. That arrangement just collapsed.
“dangerous for our country”
Money mends it
On Tuesday, industry leaders showed up at a virtual press conference with a completely different posture toward the president, all to discuss a bipartisan federal film and TV production incentive.
The praise parade
SAG-AFTRA's Sean Astin, MPA chief Charles Rivkin, and Rep. Laura Friedman all thanked Trump for pushing Congress on the incentive. Friedman said his support made a tremendous difference.
“Donald Trump comes from entertainment. He understands it.”
From monster to leader
Astin and SAG's Duncan Crabtree-Ireland issued a statement praising Trump's leadership on the tax credit. In 2019, Astin had called him a disgusting monster.
“exactly what the entertainment industry needs”
Tariffs came first
Trump's original fix for runaway production was tariffs on foreign movies, which spooked studios worried about costs and retaliation. Jon Voight, his Hollywood ambassador, steered him to a tax credit instead.
“We all saw the kind of evolution of the president's direction on this. That is because of Jon Voight.”
An unlikely coalition
The MPA, SAG-AFTRA, DGA, IATSE, and the Teamsters are backing federal action alongside Trump allies and congressional Democrats. An industry study claims 143,500 jobs a year.
“Having President Trump's support, this means everything.”
The votes aren't there yet
Nobody has agreed on the size of the credit, and Republicans in states hostile to coastal elites may read it as a handout. One GOP member worried about subsidizing celebrity salaries.
“You're going to have some Republicans who are going to look at this as a giveaway to liberal Hollywood.”
The economics don't hold
Academic research finds film incentives barely move employment, wages, or growth. Georgia recouped 19 cents on the dollar. Both the WSJ and Washington Post editorial boards came out against.
“Handouts for Hollywood”
Not converts, just desperate
Hollywood has not gone MAGA. The industry is contracting and production keeps leaving, so its most powerful institutions will work with anyone who might save the jobs.
What matters most
When production jobs are on the line, Hollywood's institutions will trade their politics for a tax credit, even though the evidence that credits work is thin.
