<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Lawmakers in both chambers of Congress introduced bipartisan legislation on Thursday to create a national film tax credit aimed at encouraging Hollywood productions to remain in the United States.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The bill, named the Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act, seeks to address the trend of film and television productions moving abroad for more favorable tax incentives.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">This measure proposes an amendment to the Internal Revenue Code to establish a 20% base tax credit for labor performed in the U.S. on qualified film and television productions. To qualify, productions must exceed $1 million in total costs and have 75% of their principal photography days conducted within the U.S.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Certain types of productions would be exempt from this tax credit, including news, live sports, talk shows, daytime dramas, social media content, advertising, and corporate videos.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The base credit could potentially increase to a 30% rate in increments of 5% if specific criteria are met. For example, productions completed by independent producers would qualify for a 5% bonus tax credit.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The legislation was introduced in the House by Representatives Nathaniel Moran (R-TX), Linda Sanchez (D-CA), Brian Jack (R-GA), and Laura Friedman (D-CA), among others. In the Senate, the companion legislation was led by Senators Tim Scott (R-SC) and Adam Schiff (D-CA).</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Friedman has been actively working to garner support for the federal film tax credit since her election to the House in 2024, following over 20 years as a film and television producer in Hollywood.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“For over a year, I’ve worked to build a coalition of unions, studios, Republicans & Democrats, and the White House, because we knew that a national film tax credit would bring hundreds of thousands of jobs back to our country,” Friedman stated. “This bill is a result of that coalition. It tells every country that has been outbidding us for American work that we are done losing.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The initiative to establish a national film tax credit gained momentum after President Donald Trump expressed support for the draft bill last month, following discussions with actor Jon Voight, whom Trump appointed as a special ambassador to Hollywood in January 2025.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The two met in late August to discuss federal actions to protect Hollywood jobs, leading to the Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The U.S. is positioned to become the latest country to offer substantial tax incentives for film and television productions, pending Congressional approval. Proponents of the legislation are optimistic that it can become law by the end of the year.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“The Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act would deliver a true gamechanger for American creators, workers, and businesses — a federal incentive that supercharges production at home, fuels jobs and growth in local communities, and makes the United States a more competitive destination for the next generation of great film and television,” stated Charles Rivkin, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The trade association, representing major U.S. film studios, released an economic study earlier this month outlining the financial benefits associated with the proposed film tax credit. Rivkin summarized some of these benefits in his recent statement.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“There’s a reason everyone from President Trump to a bipartisan group of members in Congress to studios, unions, guilds, and more want to get this done,” he added. “Passing this legislation could inject $250 billion into the country’s economy and deliver nearly 145,000 new jobs every year across all 50 states. That’s a story we can write together by enacting this bill, to ensure that more stories are crafted, created, and made here in America.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The legislation also received support from notable figures in the film industry, including writer-director Christopher Nolan, who, in his role as president of the Directors Guild of America, described the measure as the “most significant legislative effort in a generation to promote domestic film and television production, and the hundreds of thousands of jobs it supports.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“This moment is the culmination of years of work by the entertainment guilds and unions, in partnership with the MPA and lawmakers from both parties,” Nolan said. “We look forward to working with our partners in Congress, labor, the Administration, and at the studios to get this bill signed into law.”</p>