The tariff battle intensifies… but this time, an unexpected industry is caught in the crossfire, potentially leaving U.S. consumers struggling if they’re fans of a niche market.
Donald Trump has been ramping up tariffs, and it seems he’s not slowing down.
After a heated trade dispute with China, which resulted in a hefty 145 percent tariff, it appears that imports from China will continue to skyrocket in cost, making them too expensive for most people to even consider.
China then revealed it would increase tariffs on U.S. goods from 84 percent to 125 percent, prompting the President to sign an executive order “launching an investigation into the national security risks posed by U.S. dependence on imported processed critical minerals and their derivative products.”
Amid all this, another industry has also found itself hit with hefty tariffs, drawing attention in the process.
Donald Trump has ordered 100 percent tariffs on the industry (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
So, what’s this struggling industry?
The movie industry.
Yes, the very industry that brings Hollywood stars to our screens in our favorite films is being labeled as “dying.”
According to the president, he plans to impose 100 percent tariffs on films produced in foreign countries to protect U.S.-made projects.
Because of how dire the situation is, he shared that he is authorising the US Department of Commerce and the Trade Representative to impose the levy so that the US can begin to make more movies.
Trump wrote: “The Movie Industry in America is DYING a very fast death. Other Countries are offering all sorts of incentives to draw our filmmakers and studios away from the United States. Hollywood, and many other areas within the U.S.A., are being devastated.”
Calling it a ‘concerted effort by other Nations and, therefore, a National Security threat’, Trump went on to claim that there is also ‘propaganda’ within the movies’ messaging.
So, to tackle this ‘threat’, he is ‘authorizing the Department of Commerce, and the United States Trade Representative, to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands’.
Ending his post, he stated: “WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!”
The POTUS claimed that the US film industry is ‘dying’ (Getty Stock Image/Christian Adams)
The announcement didn’t clarify whether the tariffs would impact global streaming platforms like Netflix, which produces content around the world, or the broader cinema industry, which screens international films across the U.S., Europe, and beyond.
However, it appears the film industry has been on Trump’s radar since the start of his second term, when he appointed actors Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone as ambassadors tasked with promoting business opportunities in Hollywood.
“They will serve as Special Envoys to me for the purpose of bringing Hollywood—which has lost much business over the last four years to foreign countries—BACK, BIGGER, BETTER, AND STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE!” Trump posted online at the time.
In response to the tariffs, China recently announced it would cut back on the number of American films allowed into the country.
“The U.S. government’s misuse of tariffs against China will inevitably further diminish domestic audiences’ interest in American films,” the China Film Administration said. “We will follow market rules, respect audience preferences, and moderately reduce the number of American films imported.”
