Donald Trump’s call for a 100% tariff on foreign-made movies might sound patriotic, but here are nine reasons why it’s a terrible idea.
President Donald Trump has once again made headlines by expanding his “America First” pro-tariff rhetoric, this time targeting the movie business. In a Truth Social post today, Trump blasted foreign governments for luring away US film productions and declared Hollywood’s current state a “National Security threat.” His proposed fix? A 100% tariff on all movies produced outside the United States.
Here’s the full post, straight from Truth Social:
“The Movie Industry in America is DYING a very fast death. Other Countries are offering all sorts of incentives to draw our filmmakers and studios away from the United States. Hollywood, and many other areas within the U.S.A., are being devastated. This is a concerted effort by other Nations and, therefore, a National Security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda! Therefore, I am authorizing the Department of Commerce, and the United States Trade Representative, to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands. WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!”
On the surface, the idea is populist, anti-globalist, and unapologetically pro-America — in other words, catnip for Trump’s base and a natural extension of his “bring the jobs home” mantra. It should surprise no one, however, that the reality here is much more complicated than Trump’s idea makes it all sound.
Here are nine reasons why this new tariff idea is so terrible.1. It could backfire on the very industry it claims to help
First of all, this move would punish Hollywood itself. Many of the biggest US productions already shoot abroad — not to stick it to the US, but to access attractive financial incentives as well as exotic locations not available domestically.
Consider, for example, this upcoming slate of movies:
Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning was filmed across multiple continents, the globe-spanning visuals being one of the franchise’s many appeals.
