Reed Morano, Amazon’s ‘The Power’ Drop Georgia Over Abortion Bill

Reed Morano has decided to no longer film any scenes from Amazon Studios’ “The Power” in Georgia, following the signing of the state’s anti-abortion bill that would restrict abortions beyond the point of detection of a fetal heartbeat, which typically occurs around six weeks of pregnancy.

“The Power” canceled interviews with those working in local production in late April amid uncertainty over whether the production would remain in the state, an individual familiar with the issue told Variety.

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“It feels wrong for a reason,” said Morano via Instagram, extrapolating on comments she provided to Time magazine, which first reported the news. “And it felt wrong to us to go ahead and make our show and take money/tax credit from a state that is taking this stance on the abortion issue. We just couldn’t do it.”

Sister Pictures’ Jane Featherstone and Naomi De Pear, executive producers of “The Power,” said that they have not yet committed to filming in any U.S. locations yet.

“The collective decision taken by Sister Pictures and Reed Morano to cancel the planned scout to Georgia for The Power is a direct response to the signing of the ‘heartbeat bill,'” they said in a statement provided to Variety. “No production commitments have yet been made to shoot in any location in the U.S. We feel we have to stand up for a woman’s right to choose what happens to her body, and so while this is not a decision we have taken lightly, we feel strongly that it is the right one at this point in time.”

The 10-part thriller drama, which was ordered to series in February, is based on the book by Naomi Alderman and will go into production this year, with Morano at the helm. The story revolves around teen girls the world over who suddenly develop the power to electrocute people at will and leads to a “complete reversal of the power balance of the world.” Morano won an Emmy in 2017 for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for her work on “The Handmaid’s Tale.”

Morano has previously made her feelings clear about her opposition to a similar bill in Alabama, retweeting others’ posts decrying the legislation that will ban abortions except for cases where a woman’s health is at risk.

“The Power” is being produced by Sister Pictures and executive produced by Jane Featherstone, Naomi de Pear, Naomi Alderman and Reed Morano.

Amazon Studios declined to comment.

Additionally, Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo comedy “Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar” has also pulled out of Georgia following the signing of the bill.

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