In a social media post on Sunday, US President Donald Trump threatened to impose a “national security threat” on foreign films.
Trump’s threat has left many questions unanswered because the details are sparse. We explain what his threat, if it is enforced, might mean for the film industry, how his tariffs might be retaliated against, and how this might affect ticket sales.
Trump announced what, exactly?
Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform that “the movie industry in America is dying very quickly. He added that other nations are “offering all kinds of incentives” to entice independent filmmakers and studios.
According to Trump, “This is a coordinated effort by other nations, and it poses a threat to national security.”
Trump also referred to foreign movies as “messaging and propaganda.”
He ended his post by saying that he was authorizing the US Trade Representative and the Department of Commerce to “assemble the process” of imposing a 100 percent tariff on movies that are “produced in foreign countries.”
The White House appeared to step back on Monday. The administration is exploring all options, according to White House spokesman Kush Desai, “Although no definitive decisions on foreign film tariffs have been made, the country’s national and economic security is protected while making Hollywood great again.”
What qualifies as a foreign film, exactly?
One of the many inquiries that Trump’s threat has raised is that.
Films in a globalized world rarely rely on resources from just one country, as happens with most things. Hollywood movies, for instance, might have an American financier but could also be shot abroad with actors and crew from various nations.
Wicked, one of the top-grossing Hollywood movies of 2024, was shot at Sky Studios Elstree in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, in the United Kingdom.
In Leavesden, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, parts of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, which was released in 2023, were shot in Warner Brothers studios. In a UK studio, Barbie created the California-inspired Dreamhouse. In addition to creating jobs and supporting local businesses, Barbie’s production contributed more than 80 million pounds ($106m) to the UK economy during the filming process.
The same studio transformed into Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory in Paul King’s Wonka, which was later adapted into the bright pink pool slides for Rube Goldberg’s candy-churning Rube Goldberg machines.
The Fall Guy, a comedy action film starring Ryan Gosling, and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes were two examples of US films that were partially or completely shot in Australia last year. The federal government of Australia offers incentives for significant film projects in Australia, including a 30% discount under the location offset scheme. Similar tax relief incentives are provided in New Zealand.
Nosferatu, a US Gothic horror film, was shot in Prague, Czech Republic, the same year. In addition to other nations, US movies have been shot in Germany, Spain, and New Zealand.
On the other hand, many non-US movies were at least partially shot there. The Brooklyn Bridge, Miami’s beaches, and Chicago’s neighborhoods have all been used as backdrops for romantic comedies and robberies in recent Bollywood films, which has increased Indian tourists’ interest in US cities. Whether or not these movies qualify as “foreign” films would depend on how much money they bring in to the US.
How much do foreign movies rely on the US as a market?
Indian movies are profitable on foreign markets. According to Box Office India, the 2016 movie Dangal, a biopic about India’s famous wrestling sisters, Geeta Phogat and Babita Phogat, received about $ 12.4 million from the US and Canada.
The Producers Guild of India president, Shibasish Sarkar, told the Press Trust of India (PTI) on Monday that Indian films made about $100 million at the US box office. Vivek Agnihotri, a filmmaker, told PTI that “the diaspora market, which is price-sensitive, turned into a source of income for Indian films. If tariffs were implemented, Arkar and Agnihotri made speculative predictions that ticket prices would rise. When the movies are going to be on Netflix, Amazon, etc., Agnihotri said, “I don’t think anyone will watch them in theaters.”
The largest Indian diaspora population in the world is 5.4 million people living in the US.
However, Indian movies are not the only ones that make a significant US dollar. The UK franchise centered around Paddington, the anthropomorphic bear, Paddington in Peru, made more than $45 million in the US.
South Korean movies perform well on US screens. The King of Kings, an animated film with Seong Ho Jang’s direction, grossed $54.7 million at the box office in April this year, more than Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, a 2019 Academy Award-winning film, which grossed $53.8 million in the US. These are the US’s highest-grossing South Korean movies. However, Oscar Isaac is one of the stars in the English-language film The King of the Kings, which is in English. A Korean-language movie called Parasite.
On the other hand, movies from nations like China rely hardly on US viewers because language is still a challenge for them to overcome.
Chinese animation film Ne Zha 2 earned $1.9 billion from nearly 80 000 screens in February of this year, according to Chinese ticketing company Maoyan, making it the highest-grossing animated movie in history. mainland China made up over 99 percent of the Mandarin-language film’s box office revenue. Despite being the 14th highest-grossing movie on the planet, Yolo, the Chinese comedy superhit from 2024, earned only $2 million in the US, according to IMDb’s Box Office Mojo.
What other nations’ responses to Trump’s threat?
Tony Burke, the home affairs minister and minister for the arts, responded to Trump’s threat with, “Nobody should be in doubt that we will stand up unwaveringly for the rights of the Australian screen industry.”
Christopher Luxon, the prime minister of New Zealand, stated that his administration was awaiting additional information regarding the tariffs. We’ll have to examine the specifics of what ultimately occurs. But, he said, “We’ll be a great advocate and great champion of that industry and sector.”
Bectu’s head of the UK’s media and entertainment industry, Philippa Childs, demanded protection of the country’s film industry.
An industry that is only just recovering could be severely harmed by these tariffs, according to Childs.
What has the US done?
Following Trump’s announcement, US media stocks dropped on Monday. In early trading, Netflix’s shares dropped by 2.5 percent, while Disney, Warner Brothers, and Comcast all dropped by between 0.7 and 1.7 percent.
Paolo Pescatore, a PP Foresight analyst, told the Reuters news agency, “There is too much uncertainty, and this latest move raises more questions than answers.” Everyone will struggle to comprehend the entire process, which is not something that will happen in the near future. Costs will undoubtedly be passed on to consumers.
Hollywood is “dieing,” according to Trump, right?
Hollywood has experienced a number of setbacks in recent years, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hollywood studios made $30 billion globally last year, a decline of about 7% from 2023, according to Gower Street Analytics. Even though the revenue from the previous year was higher than those from 2020, 2021, and 2022, it was still below the pre-pandemic average by about 20%.
The trade unions representing Hollywood writers and performers organized a strike in 2023 to demand better working conditions and better protection against AI use. Some studios shut down while others reduced staff due to this.
Los Angeles, the city where Hollywood is located, was ravaged by wildfires in January of this year. Southern California’s numerous locations for television and film productions were harmed or destroyed. Many actors also lost their homes as a result of the fire.
Many in the US’s film and television industries have rallied to support Hollywood’s revival, calling on California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, to pass laws like increasing tax incentives to do so. The argument is that Hollywood is rife with middle-class workers, gig workers, and local businesses that are experiencing production decline.
