International Brotherhood of Teamsters President Sean O’Brien applauded President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs on foreign-made movies, suggesting they will pave the way for Hollywood jobs to return stateside.
Trump announced on Sunday that he would seek to implement a 100% tariff on all films “produced in foreign lands,” stating that other countries are offering “incentives” to draw filmmakers away from the United States. O’Brien, who spoke at the 2024 Republican National Convention, stated that “working bipartisan” is meant to improve the lives of all U.S. workers. He stated the president’s tariffs are relevant to the Teamsters’s mission.
“We represent hundreds of thousands of people in this industry, who went on strike against these big corporations, still — even though the strike is over — still want to go back to work,” O’Brien stated on Fox News’s America Reports, referring to the writer’s and actor’s strike of 2023. “But they’re sending movies and productions over to Paris based on New York. Why aren’t they bringing Paris to New York? And there’s a reason for it: because these greedy corporations get cheaper rates over in Europe and all these foreign nations, and we’re suffering for it.”
O’Brien continued by encouraging the Trump administration to place tariffs on film studios and require them to film in the U.S., offsetting the extra cost of doing so by taking “a little bit less on your bottom line.”
The state of Hollywood was also lamented by O’Brien, as he suggested that Tinseltown is now focused on “the bottom line of a balance sheet” over the creativity of the film industry. He also argued there is “no reason” why film studios should not be incentivized to film in the U.S., and that those wanting to film outside the country should “pay a price” based upon tariffs.
O’Brien acknowledged that Trump would always face resistance for anything he proposes, even if what he proposes is “good for this country.” As such, he is focused on looking beyond differing opinions with lawmakers in a bid to return jobs in the nation.
NEWSOM LOOKS TO TEAM UP WITH TRUMP ON FEDERAL FILM TAX CREDIT
Actor Kirk Cameron has also spoken favorably of Trump’s tariffs on the film industry, stating that it is “a great idea” that should increase film production in the U.S. Cameron also suggested that artificial intelligence and computer-generated imagery could aid Hollywood in avoiding these tariffs, claiming “you really don’t really have to go anywhere” to make movies that are set in foreign countries.
White House spokesman Kush Desai stated that there has been no final decision regarding details of the film tariffs, but did say the Trump administration is “exploring all options” on the matter.