‘Too early’ to say how Trump's movie tariffs will impact NZ’s film industry

Monday, 5 May 2025

A 100% tariff imposed on foreign movies by the US president could slow down international productions filming in Aotearoa.

US President Donald Trump has authorised a 100% tariff on foreign movies.

Trump said he wants to revive what he calls a “dying” American movie industry.

NZ Film Commission says it’s too early to speculate on what the tariffs may mean for New Zealand’s film industry.

A 100% tariff imposed on foreign movies by US President Donald Trump could slow down international productions filming in Aotearoa.

Trump announced on Monday (NZ time) the Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative was authorised to impose a 100% tariff on movies produced in “foreign lands”.

It could be too early to tell what affect Trump’s tariffs on the movie industry will have on local films.

In a post on X he wrote that the movie industry in American was “DYING a very fast death” and said other countries offering incentives to draw American filmmakers and studios away from the US was a “National Security Threat”.

“It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda! Therefore, I am authorizing the Department of Commerce, and the United States Trade Representative, to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands. WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!”

Equity New Zealand director Denise Roche.

The director of Equity New Zealand, the union and organisation representing performers who work in New Zealand’s entertainment industries, said she was still “trying to get my head around how those tariffs would work”.

“I suppose he’s trying to offset the incentives other countries offer international screen production companies, for us here the Screen Production Rebate, with a disincentive – a tariff. But how does that get paid,” Denise Roche questioned.

“Production companies are very sensitive to anything that impacts their budgets so this could potentially slow down international productions filming in New Zealand. It is pretty slow at the moment and it is difficult to see how this would play out.”

NZ Film Commission chief executive Annie Murray said it was difficult to say what the tariffs would mean for the NZ film industry.

“We’re in the process of speaking with our international partners about what the implications could be. We’re mindful, however, this is an evolving situation and it’s too early to speculate on what this could mean.”