Netflix chief admits Trump is helping showbiz industry as federal tax credit bill aims to fuel Hollywood jobs
LOS ANGELES — One of Hollywood's top executives offered praise for President Donald Trump as he rallied behind a proposed federal tax credit aimed to bringing back American jobs in the entertainment industry.
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos was asked Wednesday by Bloomberg News' Lucas Shaw what his relationship with Trump is like as the two of them became more acquainted as the streaming giant pursued a buyout of Warner Bros. Discovery, ultimately losing to Paramount.
"Well... for everything else you wanna think, he's a guy who really cares about the entertainment business," Sarandos said at the outlet's annual Bloomberg Screentime summit. "And he cares about protecting the industry and creating jobs. And he loves creating jobs in the entertainment business in America."
In August, Trump expressed support for the federal tax incentive to keep film and television productions within the U.S. versus overseas. Over the past several years, countries like the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada have lured major Hollywood projects using tax credits, and the result was that it could become less expensive to shoot a production across the ocean than to film on the backlot of a legacy studio.
The proposed bill, formally introduced last week, has bipartisan support with Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C. and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., co-sponsoring the legislation.
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When asked whether he believed the bill will become law, Sarandos expressed some skepticism, citing "a couple of wild card things," such as the result of next month's midterms.
"I think it's a bipartisan approach, which helps a lot. I think it's completely sound, and it has a working model that's proven, that you can put a dollar in and get six to nine dollars out, depending on how well you administer the incentive," Sarandos said. "The problem is, is you have, depending on what's going to happen in a couple of weeks, you've got a lame duck session, and if you have a change in control and who wants to champion what, who wants to give you a win. The win for America is if that — if we got it. That would be a win for the country."
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The Netflix boss dinged Democrat-controlled California for allowing jobs to flee the state over the years.
"I just think over the years, California got, I think, complacent that the talent was here. They let the infrastructure age. They make it very difficult to shoot in the city of Los Angeles," Sarandos said.
Sarandos continued, "We just finished David Fincher's movie — [it] was no walk in the park. "Animals" ... we shot that in LA. We shot "Cliff Booth" in LA. And we shot the new season of ["Nobody Wants This"]... just those three productions alone — over $400 million in production spending in Los Angeles — without, you know, the best incentives."