Irish producer Stephen Hall has criticised former U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to impose a 100% tariff on films produced outside the United States, calling the move “shortsighted” and “deliberately timed” to provoke concern in the global film industry.
Speaking on RTÉ’s News at One, Hall, who is producing the fantasy series The Wayfinders, expressed skepticism over the feasibility of such a tariff. “I can’t see how a 100% tariff would work,” he said, adding that the announcement is “probably intended to cause a little bit of panic.”
Trump announced the plan on Truth Social, claiming Hollywood was being “devastated” by studios outsourcing production to countries offering more competitive tax incentives. He argued the trend amounted to a “national security threat” and said the Department of Commerce would begin implementing the tariffs immediately. “WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!” Trump wrote.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick responded with a brief statement on X, saying: “We’re on it,” but neither he nor Trump offered details about the scope of the proposed tariff. It remains unclear whether it would apply to films shown in cinemas, streaming platforms, or both, or whether it would be calculated based on production costs or earnings.
Hall acknowledged that international tax incentives have drawn productions away from Hollywood, including to Ireland, which has seen more than 850 film and TV productions benefit from its tax relief programme since 2016. “It’s quite hard to compete with global tax credits,” he said, but noted that encouraging domestic production would be more effective than penalising international projects.
The proposed tariff has sparked concern across the industry. In the UK, Philippa Childs, head of the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theatre Union (Bectu), warned it “could deal a knock-out blow” to the British film sector, which is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. She urged the UK government to defend its creative workforce, especially the thousands of freelancers who drive the industry.
Hollywood’s production activity has declined sharply, with Film LA reporting a nearly 40% drop in Los Angeles over the past decade. Rising costs, natural disasters such as the 2025 wildfires, and more competitive international incentives have pushed studios to look overseas.
Trump’s move comes as California struggles to retain film production, with industry voices like actor Rob Lowe pointing out, “It’s cheaper to bring 100 people to Ireland” for filming than to produce a project in the U.S.
As the global film industry waits for further clarity, stakeholders on both sides of the Atlantic are bracing for potential disruption.
