Hollywood offshoring: A look at who's winning the global production race

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At the Burbank City Hall chambers packed with Hollywood national workers, assemblage advocates and journalists, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) laid retired the outgo of losing section movie and TV production:

More than 42,000 jobs lost. Livelihoods destroyed. Future opportunities lost.

Increasingly, Schiff said, those jobs are being “lured abroad” by “foreign governments that person invested aggressively successful gathering their ain movie industries.”

To underscore the point, Schiff cited immoderate sobering data: Last year, 45% of each U.S. films and scripted tv shows were changeable internationally, up from astir 33% successful 2022.

California and different states person bolstered their accumulation inducement programs, but it’s not enough, Schiff said. The erstwhile national authoritative was making the lawsuit for wherefore a national taxation recognition is needed to level the playing field.

“State programs cannot simply substitute for the benignant of global, national and competitory taxation incentives that are needed to bring accumulation backmost to American ungraded and halt its offshoring,” helium said past period astatine the event. “The urgency could not beryllium greater.”

Many manufacture leaders agree. In a caller survey conducted by information steadfast ProdPro, workplace executives “overwhelmingly” said a U.S. national inducement programme that could beryllium added connected apical of authorities taxation credits would “materially summation home accumulation activity.”

“Theoretically, it conscionable makes a batch of sense,” said Joe Chianese, elder vice president astatine Entertainment Partners, which tracks accumulation incentives worldwide. “If it were to happen, it would decidedly assistance not conscionable California, but U.S. accumulation successful general.”

A national credit, however, would necessitate bipartisan legislature enactment — thing that’s successful abbreviated proviso these days successful Washington, D.C. — arsenic good arsenic the support of President Trump.

The president is not ever a instrumentality of Hollywood, though helium has appointed 3 “special ambassadors” tasked with boosting U.S. production.

To beryllium sure, the U.S. inactive captures the bulk of large fund productions, but its marketplace stock successful that class is shrinking. Last year, the U.S. led each countries with a full of $12.15 cardinal successful accumulation spending, but that was down 20% from 2024, according to ProdPro.

Here’s a look astatine wherever the movie wealth is going:

U.K.

The United Kingdom has agelong been a magnet for Hollywood, but its allure has lone grown successful caller years acknowledgment to expanded movie incentives, experienced crews and caller facilities.

The U.K. had the second-highest accumulation spending successful 2025 with a full of $6.97 billion, a summation of 15%, according to ProdPro.

Emblematic of the shift: Walt Disney Co.’s Marvel Studios is present shooting astir of its projects, including the upcoming “Avengers: Doomsday” film, successful the U.K. alternatively than its longtime location of Georgia. The authorities invested heavy successful gathering soundstages to pull movie concern from California, earning the moniker “Hollywood of the South.”

Ryan Gosling successful a spaceship successful a inactive from the movie "Project Hail Mary."

Other high-profile productions that filmed successful Britain see Universal Pictures’ “The Odyssey” and Sony Pictures Entertainment‘s upcoming Beatles movie quartet, arsenic good arsenic specified TV shows arsenic HBO’s “Game of Thrones” prequel “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms.”

Famously, Warner Bros. Pictures produced each 8 “Harry Potter” films astatine the Leavesden Studios, which it present owns. Just 17 miles away, Pinewood Studios, which opened successful 1936, has hosted Amazon MGM Studios amusement “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” Paramount Pictures’ “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One” and respective “Star Wars” films.

Last year, planetary diagnostic movie and TV accumulation spending contributed astir $7.8 cardinal to the U.K. economy, according to a caller study from the British Film Commission. U.S. movie spending successful the U.K. roseate 29.7% from 2024, the study said.

“Studios, directors and producers proceed to admit the U.K. arsenic a beacon of reliability for fiscal incentives, infrastructure and endowment successful a shifting, uncertain and highly competitory environment,” British Film Commission Chief Executive Adrian Wootton said successful a statement.

Britain revised its programme successful 2024 and present offers a 25.5% refundable taxation recognition for qualifying diagnostic movie and TV productions and astir 30% for animated films and TV shows, arsenic good arsenic children’s TV programs (indie films tin suffice for an enhanced recognition of astir 40%).

Unlike successful California, the British taxation credits tin beryllium applied to offset wage costs of actors, directors and producers. What’s more, determination is nary backing headdress for the program.

“The U.K. not lone has large incentives but a beardown unit basal and infrastructure,” Chianese said.

Canada

Canada has been a go-to destination for U.S. producers since the aboriginal 1980s.

Though it developed an aboriginal estimation for shooting TV movies, the state has expanded into shows and diagnostic films, bolstered by a national inducement of 16% connected Canadian labor, successful summation to provincial taxation credits that tin stack connected apical of that. If a task shoots successful Manitoba, for instance, the national and provincial credits and uplifts tin adhd up to much than 60%.

That’s attracted large productions including HBO’s apocalypse play “The Last of Us,” which filmed its archetypal play successful Alberta; and FX’s “Shogun,” which changeable successful British Columbia, agelong a movie hub.

The state besides has postproduction taxation credits that incentivize animation and ocular effects work. Currently, shows specified arsenic CBS procedural “Tracker” and Showtime thriller “Yellowjackets” are filming successful British Columbia.

Four men basal connected the borderline of a stone cliff successful a inactive from the amusement "Shogun."

But the continued diminution of broadcast TV, arsenic good arsenic spending cutbacks astatine streaming services, deed Canada hard.

Last year, the state attracted $4.61 cardinal successful high-budget accumulation spending, down 13% from 2024, according to ProdPro.

“It’s getting better,” said Marnie Gee, British Columbia’s movie commissioner. “I deliberation we’re cautiously optimistic.”

Eastern Europe

Eastern Europe accounted for $1.53 cardinal successful accumulation spending successful 2025, up a whopping 78% implicit the erstwhile year, led by Hungary and Germany.

Eastern Europe has respective selling points, among them flexible above-the-line incentives and little accumulation and labour costs than successful the U.S. and U.K.

In Hungary, spending from high-budget projects much than doubled from $486 cardinal successful 2024 to a small implicit $1 cardinal successful 2025, according to ProdPro data. The state offers a 30% rebate that expands erstwhile factoring successful eligible Hungarian spending.

Movies that precocious filmed successful Hungary see Warner Bros. and Legendary Entertainment’s “Dune: Part Two” and Disney-owned Searchlight Pictures’ “Poor Things.”

“The quality to amusement up to Hungary present and person a purpose-built signifier space, a trained unit and the infrastructure determination — that’s conscionable a caller level of contention the U.S. faces,” said Alex LoVerde, main enforcement and co-founder of ProdPro.

Germany excessively has been abuzz with movie activity. In 2025, its large-budget accumulation spending totaled $348.5 million, up from $97 cardinal during the anterior year, according to ProdPro.

Late past year, Germany bolstered its national inducement program, bumping its currency rebate to 30% from its erstwhile 20% to 25% level, and accrued its wide yearly headdress to astir $293 million, up from astir $156 million.

The national benefits tin beryllium combined with determination movie funds, specified arsenic those successful Bavaria oregon Berlin-Brandenburg, which hosted the upcoming merchandise “The Hunger Games: Sunrise connected the Reaping.”

Germany upped its incentives to support up with rival hubs specified arsenic the Czech Republic and Ireland.

“Money rules the game,” said Christiane Krone-Raab, caput of the Berlin Brandenburg Film Commission. “We had to bash thing astir it.”

Ireland

The Emerald Isle has go a apical filming location.

Spending totaled $320 cardinal past year, up 42% from 2024, according to ProdPro. The state was adjacent ranked successful the apical 5 preferred filming spots successful ProdPro’s enforcement survey.

Ireland offers a 32% basal taxation credit, arsenic good arsenic targeted ocular effects incentives and circumstantial sweeteners for unscripted series, which person lured U.S.-based crippled shows specified arsenic “The Floor,” which tin person arsenic galore arsenic 100 contestants and is hosted by histrion Rob Lowe.

Rob Lowe stands with 2 contestants connected the crippled amusement "The Floor," which shoots successful Ireland.

“It’s cheaper to bring 100 Americans to Ireland than to locomotion crossed the batch astatine Fox,” Lowe told listeners of his “Literally!” podcast past year.

Times unit writer Cerys Davies contributed to this report.

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