US President Donald Trump has announced that he is “authorising” a 100 per cent tariff on “all movies coming into our country that are produced in foreign lands".
Describing internationally produced films as a “national security threat”, he added on Truth Social: “We want movies made in America, again.”
Mr Trump did not say that he would impose the tariff directly, explaining instead that he is authorising the US Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative to institute the proposed levy.
Hollywood filmmaking has increasingly moved overseas and to Canada in recent decades, with many countries offering tax incentives to attract big budget productions.
The Mena region, in particular, has become a hotspot for Hollywood film production, particularly in the UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Morocco and Tunisia.
More than 180 major productions have used Abu Dhabi as a filming location in recent years, including major Hollywood projects such as F1 and Now You See Me: Now You Don’t, and blockbusters Dune, Dune: Part Two, Sonic the Hedgehog and Netflix’s 6 Underground and War Machine, as well as entries from the Mission: Impossible, Star Wars and Fast and Furious franchises.
Abu Dhabi launched its rebate scheme in 2013 and updated it in January to allow productions to earn up to 50 per cent cash back, increasing its base subsidy from 30 to a minimum of 35 per cent.
Other regional incentives include rebates set in Morocco at 30 per cent, Jordan at 25 per cent and Saudi Arabia at 40 per cent.
It is unclear when the tariff will come into force or how it may affect production. The moviemaking process has become increasingly internationalised at multiple stages, including initial photography, editing and CGI development and rendering.
It remains to be seen whether or not existing projects that have yet to be released, such as F1, will be subject to the proposed tariffs.
Abu Dhabi Film Commission declined to comment on the proposed US tariff plan. The National also reached out to Saudi Arabia's Film AlUla and the Royal Film Commission of Jordan for comment.
Mr Trump clarified to C-SPAN on Sunday that he has “done some very strong research over the past week", saying the US is “making very few movies now”.
He added: “Hollywood is being destroyed. I’m not blaming other nations, but other nations have stolen our movie industry.
“If they’re not willing to make a movie inside the United States, then we should have a tariff on movies that come in. And not only that, governments are actually giving big money. They’re supporting them financially. That’s sort of a threat to our country in a sense.
“This is a concerted effort by other nations and, therefore, a national security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda.”
Mr Trump blamed California Governor Gavin Newsom for Hollywood's inclination to make more frequently outside of the US. When asked for a response, a representative from Mr Newsom’s office told the Hollywood Reporter: “Looks like it’s distraction day again in Washington.”
