The unlikely state taking jobs from Hollywood in latest blow to ailing industry

Studios that once prioritized proximity to Hollywood backlots are now chasing the biggest subsidies, pushing work out of California and into Canada, the United Kingdom, Georgia, Louisiana and increasingly New Jersey.

The state pulled in nearly $1 billion in production spending last year from 17 film and TV projects with budgets above $10 million, roughly double the prior year, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Its appeal comes from aggressive incentives offering up to 35% in tax credits on local spending, with select long-term deals reaching as high as 45% for studios that commit to filming there for at least a decade. 

Lionsgate, Netflix and Paramount secured those top-tier packages, locking in production outside traditional production hot spots..

That shift is already reshaping where major projects are filmed.

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Lionsgate’s “Power: Origins” moved production from New York to New Jersey, reflecting how easily shows now relocate based on cost rather than location ties.

Netflix filmed nearly 20 projects in New Jersey over the past year, including “Happy Gilmore 2,” which had a $152.5 million budget and received about $60 million in tax credits.

The streaming giant is also building a more than $1 billion production campus at Fort Monmouth, signaling a long-term footprint in New Jersey.

Studios are investing in permanent infrastructure like soundstages and production hubs outside Los Angeles, reducing the likelihood that work will return to California even as demand stabilizes.

Other once-strong production regions are also experiencing volatility. 

Georgia, a major beneficiary of the exodus from Hollywood in recent years, recorded a 31% drop in spending last year as more projects moved to the United Kingdom, where subsidies are even more generous.

“It’s great to have the circus come to town, but then they pack up and leave nothing behind,” Netflix co-chief executive Ted Sarandos told the Journal.

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California once stood as the undisputed global center of filmmaking, but it is now competing against states and countries locking in decade-long studio commitments and billions in guaranteed spending.

New Jersey alone has pledged $430 million annually in film incentives through 2049, underscoring how aggressively states are locking in long-term production pipelines at California’s expense.