The new presidency in the United States is bringing a new economic situation that will affect both the nation itself and other countries. In this case, the president will implement a tariff increase of up to 100% on film products and non-related to Hollywood flims. The US president said the country’s movie industry was “dying a very fast death”. Donald Trump has said he will target films made outside of the US as part of his ongoing tariff war.
Other countries were “offering all sorts of incentives to draw”
He complained that other countries were “offering all sorts of incentives to draw” filmmakers and film studios away from the United States. In a post on his social media site Truth Social, he said this was a “concerted effort by other nations and, therefore, a national security threat”. The president advocates not having individuals from other countries around him, as this could potentially harm his own country.
Mr Trump said he had authorised the Department for Commerce and the office of the US trade representative to put a 100% tariff “on any and all movies coming into our country that are produced in foreign lands”. This will highlight creations from origins other than those of the United States. It will mark a turning point in the film industry. Directors and producers will have to consider the distribution and production processes they will implement to manage these new, game-changing implementations.
A new controversy within the policies that Trump is implementing
It comes as the president made another policy announcement on social media on Sunday, announcing he would order the reopening of notorious prison Alcatraz. This is another potentially controversial measure along the lines advocated by President Trump.
It is not clear how the tariff would affect international productions, such as the upcoming Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning, which is filmed in the US as well as other countries around the world.
Data from the Motion Picture Association shows American movies produced $22.6bn (£17bn) in exports and $15.3bn (£11.5bn) in surplus in 2023. The latest tariff announcement from President Trump is part of a wider crackdown on US imports announced last month. The amounts have been taken into account to promote this new implementation related to tariffs.
It must be underline the 10% baseline tariff on good from other countries
In a news conference outside the White House, he outlined a 10% baseline tariff on goods from other countries, with varying levies allocated – later increasing the tariff on Chinese goods to 145%. It is not the first time Mr Trump has expressed worries around movie production moving overseas. He underlined actors Mel Gibson, Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone as “special ambassadors” to Hollywood shortly before he took office, vowing to bring Hollywood back “bigger, better, and stronger than ever before”. US film and television production has faced a hard time in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic, which has taking into account the Hollywood guild strikes of 2023 and the recent wildfires in Los Angeles.
Other countries’ reaction
Meanwhile, UK media union Bectu warned the tariffs could “deal a knock-out blow” to the industry and its tens of thousands of freelancers, as it recovered from the pandemic and a “recent slowdown”. Union chief Philippa Childs told the BBC: “The government must move swiftly to defend this vital sector, and support the freelancers who power it, as a matter of essential national economic interest.”
The UK government said it was “totally committed” to ensmake sure its film sector continued to thrive and create jobs, and would set out plans to do so in its upcoming Creative Industries Sector Plan. It added that talks on an economic deal with the US were ongoing but a “running commentary” on progress was “not in the national concern”.
