Hollywood Executive Praises Trump’s Tax Credit Proposal

LOS ANGELES — A leading figure in Hollywood has commended President Donald Trump for advocating a proposed federal tax credit aimed at reviving American jobs in the entertainment sector.

Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos shared his views during an interview with Bloomberg News’ Lucas Shaw. As Netflix pursued a buyout of Warner Bros. Discovery, Sarandos and Trump became better acquainted. Although Paramount ultimately succeeded in the acquisition, Sarandos expressed admiration for Trump’s commitment to the entertainment industry.

For everything else you wanna think, he’s a guy who really cares about the entertainment business, Sarandos mentioned at Bloomberg Screentime summit. And he cares about protecting the industry and creating jobs. And he loves creating jobs in the entertainment business in America.

President Trump voiced his support for the federal tax incentive in August. The goal is to keep film and television productions within the U.S., challenging the lure of other countries like the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada, which attract major Hollywood projects through tax credits. These incentives often make foreign shoots cheaper than filming on legacy studio lots in the U.S.

The bill, introduced last week, has backing from both parties, with Senator Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Senator Adam Schiff, D-Calif., co-sponsoring the legislation.

When asked about the bill’s potential to become law, Sarandos expressed some reservations, considering the unpredictable nature of upcoming midterm elections.

I think it’s a bipartisan approach, which helps a lot. I think it’s completely sound, and it has a working model that’s proven, that you can put a dollar in and get six to nine dollars out, depending on how well you administer the incentive, Sarandos commented. The problem is, is you have, depending on what’s going to happen in a couple of weeks, you’ve got a lame duck session, and if you have a change in control and who wants to champion what, who wants to give you a win. The win for America is if that — if we got it. That would be a win for the country.

Sarandos also criticized Democrat-controlled California for the loss of jobs over the years.

California got, I think, complacent that the talent was here. They let the infrastructure age. They make it very difficult to shoot in the city of Los Angeles, Sarandos said. He detailed recent productions such as David Fincher’s movie Animals, the film Cliff Booth, and a new season of Nobody Wants This, all filmed in Los Angeles, with over $400 million in local production spending despite lacking optimal incentives.