Steve Hilton, the Trump-endorsed candidate for California governor, joined in calls on Thursday for a limiteless state subsidy for film and TV production.
Joined by Gloria Romero, who’s running for lieutenant governor, Hilton unveiled his proposal outside the shuttered Cinerama Dome, which has change into an emblem of Hollywood decline.
“That is an emergency,” Hilton said, saying the industry had suffered from “benign neglect” under 16 years of Democratic Party rule in California. “We’re allowing it to die, because other states in America and other countries are aggressively competing for the work and the roles that go together with it.”
Matt Mahan, the mayor of San Jose, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa have also called for eliminating the $750 million cap on state subsidies. Like them, Hilton didn’t offer an estimate of how much that will cost.
“It depends upon how successful we’re,” he said, noting that while there can be an upfront cost, the increased incentive would also generate economic advantages. “I need to scale back spending, which implies that we are able to reduce taxes, and it is a version of a tax cut.”
Tom Steyer, one in all the leading Democratic contenders, has also proposed increasing the $750 million cap, though he has not suggested eliminating it altogether. In response to Hilton’s plan, a spokesperson for Steyer emphasized that he also strongly opposes the merger of Paramount and Warner Bros., which is predicted to cost 1000’s of industry jobs.
“Tom’s the one candidate who will rise up to corporate monopolies and protect working people,” the spokesperson said. “Trump-backed Steve Hilton would rubber stamp mega-mergers like Warner Bros.-Paramount being pushed by MAGA billionaires.”
In an interview, Hilton presented his ties to the White House as a positive, and said he would push for a federal incentive for film production that may layer on top of state subsidies. He said he wants the combined California and federal rebate to total 60%. He has met with the Motion Picture Association, Hollywood labor unions and Jon Voight, Trump’s special ambassador to Hollywood.
“Jon actually is a friend of mine,” he said. “He endorsed me on day one in all my campaign. The president’s endorsed me. You understand, we’re a team.”
Hilton also wants the California incentive — currently set at 35%-40% of below-the-line costs — to incorporate above-the-line salaries for actors, directors, writers and producers.
Amongst major production hubs, Georgia is the just one with an uncapped tax credit. It covers 30% of above- and below-the-line costs, and peaked at $1.3 billion in 2022, before falling to about half that amid the industrywide slump. California’s industry is larger than Georgia’s, with a production workforce about eight to 10 times greater, in keeping with data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“We would like it to be high enough that it gets attention,” Hilton said. “It is a behavioral query. What do we’d like to do to get people to rethink — urgently — and reconsider production in California and in Hollywood?”
Because the leading Republican within the polls, Hilton is a heavy favorite to make it into the November runoff.