When Georgia passed the “heartbeat bill” I wondered if there would be any response from the tv/movie industry as Georgia has become an attractive location for productions. By 2016, Georgia had overtaken California as America’s top movie-making destination employing 92,000 people in the state with a worth of 7.5 billion dollars a year.www.thesun.co.uk/… In May there were 33 TV shows and movies filming in Georgia. www.projectcasting.com/…
Actress Alyssa Milano (Charmed currently filming Netflix’s Insatiable) was one of the first to speak out against Georgia’s oppressive restrictive abortion bill. She said that while she was currently under contract at Netflix, she “would not return to the show if it films in Georgia in the future” www.buzzfeednews.com/… Milano wrote a letter to Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, signed by 50 fellow actors, including Ben Stiller, Natalie Portman, Sean Penn, Don Cheadle, Amy Schumer, Alec Baldwin, Emma Roberts, Jessica Chastain, and Sophie Turner, pledging that they will no longer work in Georgia if the abortion ban became law. www.vanityfair.com/...
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp mocked Milano’s efforts, calling the list, “C-list celebrities squawking”. www.newsweek.com/ Milano was also chided in the press and on social media when she also suggested women have a sex strike as a means of protesting the law. www.usatoday.com/…
But in early May, the protest from the entertainment industry continued to gather steam. Christine Vachon of Killer Films (Vox, Lux, First Reformed, Carol) tweeted that the company will “no longer consider Georgia as a viable shooting location until this ridiculous law is overturned.” David Simon from Blown Deadline Productions (The Wire, The Deuce) tweeted “Our (production company) will pull Georgia off the list until we can be assured the health options and civil liberties of our female colleagues are unimpaired.” Producer Nina Jacobson’s company Colorforce (Crazy Rich Asians/American Crime Story) quoted Simon’s tweet and echoed “Ditto”. Netflix producers, Mark Duplass of Duplass Brothers Productions (Aspergers Are US) tweeted “Will you pledge with me not to film in Georgia until they reverse this backwards legislation and Neal Dodson from CounterNarrative Films (Tripple Frontier) answered his tweet with “Add my company to the list. No Georgia filming on any of our projects until this law is gone. We’re with you.” www.hollywoodreporter.com/…
Many of these actors and the independent film companies who had spoken out were not really doing a lot of filming in Georgia but on May 20th, Jason Bateman, Netflix’s Ozark and HBO’s’ The Outsider , both which film in Georgia, said that if the “heartbeat bill” makes it through the court system “he will not work in Georgia, or any other state that is so disgracefully at odds with women’s rights.” www.fempositive.com/...
The major Hollywood studios were quiet on this issue. I can imagine them weighing their options with dollar signs on one side and more dollar signs on the other trying to figure out what they should do. But this week Disney Chief Bob Iger admitted the reality they were facing “if many people who work for us will not want to work there, and we will have to heed their wishes.” www.marketwatch.com/...
So finally, on May 30, 2019, a tsunami of statements from the big players hit the media, and were summarized in a story in the Hollywood Reporter by Katie Kilkenny. www.hollywoodreporter.com/…
Netflix: “We will work with the ACLU and others to fight it in court...Given the legislation has not yet been implemented, we’ll continue to film there—while also supporting partners and artists who choose not to. Should it ever come into effect, we’d rethink our entire investment in Georgia.”
Warner Media: “We will watch the situation closely, and if the new law holds, we will reconsider Georgia as the home to any new productions.”
NBCUniversal: “ The heartbeat bill, if actually enacted, would strongly impact our decision-making for production in the area.”
AMC(The Walking Dead): “If this highly restrictive legislation goes into effect, we will reevaluate our activity in Georgia”
Sony “We will continue to monitor that process in close consultation with our filmmakers and television showrunner, talent and other stake holders, as we consider our future production options.
CBS (MacGyver) “If the law takes effect in Georgia or elsewhere, these may not be viable locations for our future production.”
Viacom “Should the new law ever take effect; we will assess whether we will continue to produce projects in Georgia.”
Their carefully metered statements hedged with “shoulds” and “ifs” were not exactly flaming statements of protest but still, they had to put Georgia on notice, the industry they have so carefully built in their state may in the near future be forced to “look elsewhere.” It’s better than the cricket silence.
and others continue to weigh in...STX (Greenleaf) “In an effort to aid those on the ground fighting to reverse this legislation, STX will be making a donation to the ACLU of Georgia. Should HB481 ever officially come into effect, we will reassess filming any future projects in the state.” and Abrams and Peele; Pledged to donate their episodic fees for the first season to ACLU of Georgia and Fair Fight Georgia. HBO’s upcoming Lovecraft Country will shoot in Georgia but is donating money to two charities who are fighting this law.
Alyssa Milano started with one voice, that ripple continues to build. If you want to add your voice to the effort, contact the players to either offer your support for their statements or to encourage others who film in Georgia to speak out. Here is who is filming in Georgia as of May 2019
Ambitions (working title) debuts on OWN in 2019
Bigger (Viacom, BET)
Christmas on the Square ((New Netflix)- Dolly Parton musical series
Conjuring 3 (Warner Brothers)
Deadly Cult (Oxygen)
Dish Nation, Season 7 (FOX)
Don’t Be Tardy, Season 8 (Bravo)
Dwight in Shining Armor, Season 2 (BYU tv)
Encore (Disney) staring Kristen Bell
The Encounte (PureFlix)
Fear Street Fox- staring Kiana Madeira and Olivia Welch
Good Eats: The Return ( Food Network)
Greenland (STX) staring Gerard Butler
Greenleaf, Season 4 (OWN) Oprah Winfrey has a regular role on the show as Mavis, Grace’s aunt
Holidate (Netflix) -new movie starring Emma Roberts
India Sweets & Spices (indie)
Insatiable, Seasons 2 (Netflix) -Stars Debby Ryan
Intolerable (Oxygen) Nancy Grace (Oxygen)
Love & Hip Hop, Atlanta, Season 8 (Bravo)
Married to Medicine, Season 7 (Bravo)
The Outsider (HB0)
Ozark, Season 3 (Netflix) stars Jason Bateman
P Valley (Starz)
Real Housewives of Atlanta, Season 12 (Bravo)
Robbie (Comedy Central)
Saints & Sinners, Season 4 (Bounce)
Say yes to the Dress, (TLC)
Stargirl, Season 1 (DC Universe)
The Plath Family (TLC)
The Walking Dead, Season 10 (AMC)