Gavin Newsom Tells Hollywood to Stop Filming in Conservative States: ‘Anti-Abortion States That Rule With Hatred’
Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) publicly announced his support for new legislation that would provide $1.65 billion in tax credits for TV and movie creators, putting additional pressure on Hollywood studios to bring film production back to California.
The bill, SB 485, would invest $1.65 billion in California’s Film & Television Tax Credit Program, extending the current program for an additional five years. Extending this program is intended to ensure California’s status as the world’s film production leader, an industry that brings in millions in revenue to the state.
In a press release on Wednesday, Newsom announced his endorsement of the bill, arguing that Hollywood should avoid doing business in states that have restricted abortion care following the reversal of Roe v. Wade.
The Supreme Court caused massive controversy across the nation after they ruled on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, overturning the precedent of Roe, leaving abortion procedure legality to the individual states. Many states have quickly acted to restrict abortion care, including Georgia and Oklahoma. Newsom described these states as “moving to strip reproductive freedom.”
On Wednesday, Newsom told Hollywood it is “time to choose.”
“You can protect your workers, or continue to support anti-abortion states that rule with hatred,” the California governor wrote on Twitter.
In the statement, Newsom argued that not only has California “been the home for storytelling,” for “100 years,” but “most importantly, we share your values,” referencing the unrestricted abortion rights within the state.
States like Georgia and Oklahoma “have waged a cruel assault on essential rights,” he said, and have gone even further since the Supreme Court decision.
“They are carrying out these attacks brazenly and with the intent to cause pain in the communities they target—many of whom are essential to the success of your industry,” continued Newsom, “Today more than ever, you have a responsibility to take stock of your values—and those of your employees—when doing business in those states.”
Newsom argued that California not only represents but also guarantees freedom, calling on those who have influence in Hollywood to “Walk the walk.”
“Choose freedom. Choose creativity. Choose California,” Newsome concluded.
Read the full statement below:
Today, Hollywood will wake up to this ad.
Time to choose.
You can protect your workers, or continue to support anti-abortion states that rule with hatred.
We’re here for you. We’re extending tax credits for those that come home to the Golden State.
Choose freedom.
Choose CA. pic.twitter.com/9Bcmc6zpdu— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) August 3, 2022
Last month, Newsom was the winner of a Turning Point USA straw poll, naming the Governor the most feared 2024 Democratic candidate by conservatives. The far-right group asked which Democrat would be the most difficult to defeat in 2024, to which Newsome was named by 30% of the respondents. Former First Lady Michelle Obama came in a distant second, with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT) tied for third.
