Dennis Quaid applauded President Trump’s renewed calls for a federal film tax credit, telling Fox News host Jesse Watters Tuesday night that Hollywood needs to “Make American Movies Great Again.”
Watters kicked off the segment by noting the large percentage of Hollywood films and television shows that are shot in places like Atlanta and Canada instead of Los Angeles. While speaking with Quaid, Watters asked the actor why so many Hollywood studios continue to base their productions elsewhere.
“You got me. You really got me,” Quaid responded. “It’s too expensive to shoot in L.A. I think it was 12 years ago that I shot anything in L.A. That was a TV show. Now, all you’ll have is a maybe one or two series and a couple of game shows.”
“When I was in Georgia shooting a movie a year ago, on that very day there was 176 different productions going on at the same time,” Quaid continued. “It’s Georgia. But more than that, it’s Canada. Everything has been farmed out to Canada because it’s so cheap to shoot up there.”
On Monday, Trump renewed his public calls for a federal tax credit aiming to bring more Hollywood productions back to the United States. Trump noted on social media Monday that Hollywood’s production exodus to places like Canada and Australia has hurt California “very badly” and said Republicans and Democrats alike should “get together” to create and approve legislation addressing the issue.
“It can be done quickly, accurately, efficiently and, importantly, will benefit ALL of America,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “What we watch on the Silver Screen should be made in what was once the Movie and Motion Picture Capital of the World. Let’s get this done!”
If Trump’s proposed legislation were to pass, it would be the government’s first nationwide tax incentive benefitting stateside film and television productions. In response to the president’s comments on the subject, Quaid praised Trump.
“We’re losing our culture because of it, and I really applaud President Trump for bringing this up,” Quaid said. “We’ve subsidized our oil industry, our auto industry, and this is our culture industry, really. Let’s make American Movies Great Again.”