Director and actor Ben Affleck undoubtedly loves the city of Los Angeles and has shown that respect by filming many of his projects in Southern California. The question is, how much does LA really love the film industry? As other cities ramp up their subsidies and tax breaks, The Accountant 2 star recently revealed the news all insiders secretly suspected. California might be breathtaking, but it’s a terrible place to do business.
Promoting his new film, Affleck stated that LA had the finest crews, and he felt an obligation to the state and city after the fires decimated the area. Affleck isn’t just some dumb celebrity; he’s an award-winning producer and director, and is intensely aware not just of the artistic but the technical side of filmmaking. His advocacy comes with a warning of an impending brain drain that could cost Tinseltown its main source of revenue and identity. The golden days of Hollywood’s glamorous backlots, celebrity house tours, and bustling studio culture are not extinct… yet. Prompting the question: Is a decentralized movie industry bad or good?
1.5
/5
Release Date
April 25, 2025
Runtime
124 minutes
Director
Gavin O’Connor
Writers
Bill Dubuque
Producers
Ben Affleck, Kevin Halloran, Matt Damon, Jamie Patricof, Lynette Howell Taylor, Scott LaStaiti, Michael Joe, Mark Williams, Alison Winter
Ben Affleck Recognizes California’s Man-Made Disaster
Making a movie is disgustingly expensive, even before you calculate for marketing, which adds another 50% bump to the total budget. No movie is possible without first renting facilities/equipment, haggling with unions, scouting iconic locations, and wrangling with financiers. An awkward fact Affleck didn’t shy away from when discussing the challenges of movie-making with the Associated Press at the premiere of Gavin O’Connor’s Accountant sequel:
“Our company, Artists Equity, really tries to work when we can in Los Angeles, and post-fire it’s really, really important. […] I think the best crews in the world are here and enormously talented artists, and it’s an industry that’s been a big part of sustaining the economy of this city, and I think it’s important for it to be maintained and so it’s something that we try to do. We shot this here. Artists Equity shot about maybe half–maybe more than half–of our ten movies in LA.”
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Ben Affleck has scored one of the best Rotten Tomatoes audience scores of his career with this long-awaited sequel.
“Our company” refers to the production company co-founded by Affleck, Matt Damon, and business partner Gerry Cardinale, the makers of The Accountant series. The LA-first movement is a principled stand we can respect, but not one that is necessarily feasible, as other cities look to steal films from LA through tax rebates. The right locale can make or break a movie, as seen in Heat or Chinatown. However, a good chunk of consideration comes down to how easy it is to secure permits and how much it will cost to shoot for six months — a headache in the notoriously bureaucratic and expensive “Golden State.”
Where Has Everyone Gone, and Why Are They Leaving California?
The leadership of California had long “taken for granted” that producers would stick around out of loyalty, as Affleck bluntly put it. In 30 years, that arrogance has resulted in Los Angeles losing its appeal. New legislation offering deeper tax breaks could stanch the bleeding. California has no choice. Affleck hinted that other states, like Louisiana, Georgia, and New Mexico, and foreign countries (especially Canada, Ireland, and Britain) offer cheaper deals, as we’ve previously discussed in earlier articles. Star Wars, Twilight, and Brokeback Mountain were filmed out of state, almost out of spite, thumbing their noses at California’s renowned geographic diversity and cutting-edge facilities.
California is at a tipping point, with large companies setting up shop in more friendly states with a lower cost of living, cheap land, and reduced corporate taxes, as Newsweek points out. A matter complicated by the onslaught of tariffs, as entertainment executives maneuver a new economic landscape. Can La La Land be saved for future generations? It’s too early to know, and they’ve got stiff competition. We wouldn’t mind an East-Coast Hollywood, but good luck trying to fake an LA River car chase in Dover, Delaware.
You can view the original article HERE.
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