Tiffany Haddish added joined growing Hollywood backlash against Georgia’s abortion law on Saturday, announcing that she is postponing a stand-up show in Atlanta to protest the recently-signed law banning abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detected.
The Fox Theatre, which was scheduled to hold the show on June 22, is offering refunds to ticket holders.
“After much deliberation, I am postponing my upcoming show in Atlanta. I love the state of Georgia, but I need to stand with women and until they withdraw Measure HB481, I cannot in good faith perform there,” Haddish said in a statement. Representatives for the comedian did not immediately respond to a request from TheWrap for further comment.
Georgia has become a major filming location in recent years thanks to a tax credit program that allows productions to recoup up to 30% of direct spending in the state. According to state economic reports, Georgia was a filming site for 455 film and TV projects in 2018, generating an estimated economic impact of $9.5 billion. Atlanta’s Pinewood Studios has served as the filming location for many major blockbusters including “Black Panther” and “Avengers: Endgame.” Pinewood’s co-owner, Dan Cathy, is the CEO of Chick-Fil-A and is a staunch anti-abortion activist.
Since Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed HB481 into law, many celebrities have called for a boycott of Georgia’s film industry. But Hollywood remains divided on precisely how to respond to a law that members of the entertainment industry largely oppose.
“The Wire” creator David Simon and Colorforce’s Nina Jacobson have for instance pledged to remove Georgia from their list of future potential filming locations. Meanwhile, Jordan Peele and J.J. Abrams announced they would move forward with shooting of their upcoming HBO show “Lovecraft Country” but would donate the episode fees they receive to the ACLU and other groups fighting the abortion law.
Larger studios have been more conditional in their responses to the calls for boycotts. Netflix, Disney, WarnerMedia, AMC Networks, NBCUniversal and CBS have all released statements saying they are monitoring the situation in Georgia and that they may pull future productions from the state. The growing tensions led Kemp to cancel a planned event last month in Los Angeles promoting Georgia’s film industry.
HB481 is set to go into effect on January 1.