Newsom calls on film producers to shoot in California in wake of Roe ruling

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) urged producers to shoot films in the state instead of others that have passed anti-abortion laws, promising tax credits to those that move.

Newsom said in a tweet on Wednesday that he is launching an ad to push the film industry to choose to protect their workers instead of supporting “anti-abortion states that rule with hatred.”

Newsom’s offer comes in the aftermath of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in June, after which, more than a dozen states moved to ban or severely restrict the procedure through trigger laws.

The ad states that the “attacks” that states have made on reproductive freedom are not occurring in secret and are intended to cause pain to communities that they target. It states that many of those targeted are essential to the success of the industry.

“Today more than ever, you have a responsibility to take stock of your values — and those of your employees — when doing business in those states,” it reads.

Newsom announced his support for a bill in the state Senate on Wednesday that would provide $330 million per year in tax credits for the film and television industry through 2030.

The ad states that California is a “freedom state,” offering the health care services that people need, including abortion care, and the freedom from “repressive state governments” that tell people what to believe and threaten felony charges for not complying.

“So to those in power to make decisions about where to film, where to hire, where to open new offices, we in California say: Walk the walk,” the ad states.

Newsom has been vocal on abortion rights since the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which overturned Roe. He signed legislation to protect patients and medical providers from civil liability for providing or receiving abortion care in the state and eliminated copayments for abortion services.

He ran ads in Texas newspapers to criticize Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) over the state’s restrictive abortion laws, along with its gun laws.

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