Delays on Trump’s movie tariffs provide relief for Netflix which lost $20 billion in early trading: ‘It’s a national security threat’

With the goal of revitalizing Hollywood and increasing domestic feature film production, President Donald Trump has announced new tariffs on all films produced abroad and wishing to be imported into the United States. The details coming from the White House have been slim on the plan, but the president did confirm that the duty levied would be 100 percent.

The news sent stocks for streaming platforms tumbling, though Netflix and Disney made up some ground in the last hours of trading.

Monday’s wild ride for streaming platforms on Wall Street

Netflix closed down nearly 2 percent, while Disney, which owns the popular streaming site Hulu, was down less than half of a percent compared to its previous close.

The measure comes after President Trump denounced actions taken by other countries to attract film producers. He accused other governments of offering “all kinds of incentives to draw our filmmakers and studios away from the United States,” which he sees as having devastating consequences for Hollywood and other cities that depend on the industry, such as Atlanta.

“This is a concerted effort by other nations and, therefore, a National Security threat,” said the president in a post on Truth Social.

The White House has ordered the Department of Commerce and the United States Trade Representative “to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100 percent Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands.”

Nevertheless, Netflix, after shedding more than $20 billion on value, finished the day close to where it began, after White House spokesperson Kush Desai said that no final decisions had been made.

Later, during a press conference in the Oval Office, the president confirmed that no tariffs had gone into effect, adding that he was eager to meet with industry leaders. “I want to make sure they’re happy,” said the president, who then went on to blame California Governor Gavin Newsom for the decline of film production in the Golden State.

Trump blames Gavin Newsom for Hollywood’s decline

Later, during a press conference at the White House, the president blamed California Governor Gavin Newsom for Hollywood’s decline in film production. So far, the governor of the Golden State has not commented on the matter, but Trump says this new tariff regime will “delight” filmmakers.

“If they’re not willing to make movies in the United States, we should put a tariff on the movies coming in,” Trump told reporters. “I can tell you one thing: filmmakers love it.”

In recent years, the film industry has suffered several blows in the United States, including budget cuts, corporate consolidation, the emergence of streaming, and the COVID-19 pandemic, leading other filming locations to rise in prominence, including the United Kingdom and Canada. Additionally, Los Angeles is an expensive city, and filming there can rack up costs that might be lower in other areas, even other US cities.

However, not all the news has been made. In 2024 alone, film production in Los Angeles increased by 18.8%, the lowest level in the last five years, according to FilmLA. Though still below the average before the pandemic, the figure shows that production in Southern California is growing once again.

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