President Trump is taking direct aim at Hollywood studios filming overseas—calling it theft—and pledging to impose a 100% tariff on movies filmed outside the U.S.
In a fiery post to his Truth Social account on Monday morning, Trump wrote:
“Our movie making business has been stolen from the United States of America, by other Countries, just like stealing ‘candy from a baby.’ California, with its weak and incompetent Governor, has been particularly hard hit! Therefore, in order to solve this long time, never ending problem, I will be imposing a 100% Tariff on any and all movies that are made outside of the United States. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
Studios Shipping Jobs Overseas
Trump’s statement comes just as Marvel Studios is ditching Georgia—once a production hub for the MCU—for the U.K., citing cheaper labor and comparable tax breaks. Upcoming films, such as the two new Avengers movies and the next Spider-Man, are being filmed overseas in the UK.
Meanwhile, the Georgia film industry is suffering a major decline, with production spending down nearly 50% since 2022. That’s thousands of American jobs lost—not just in California, but in red states like Georgia.
Hollywood Hit With Warning Shot
Trump’s proposed 100% tariff would target all movies made outside the U.S., potentially slamming studios that shoot abroad and then release content domestically—whether in theaters, on streaming, or digital.
It remains to be seen how the policy would be implemented or enforced, but the message is loud and clear: Bring movie jobs back to America or pay up.
Movies filmed overseas
In addition to Avengers: Doomsday, Secret Wars, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the number of movies filmed overseas is long.
Henry Cavill’s Voltron was filmed in Australia, and his Highlander movie is being filmed in the UK.
The Masters of the Universe film was filmed in the UK.
James Cameron’s big Avatar movies were also filmed in part in New Zealand.
However, backing what Trump has to say, movies still film in the U.S., as Disney did shoot The Mandalorian & Grogu entirely in California.
