Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, and a Flamingo
Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, and a Flamingo
Good morning: In today's edition of The Industry, we look at:
Star Wars in California, Kevin Costner’s Saga, Jake Gyllenhaal & Anne Hathaway’s Beef, an intern who becomes president and a pink flamingo.
Let’s go!
THE INDUSTRY NEWS
Star Wars comes to California. For years, the California tax credit has been notoriously difficult to secure. First, because the amount of funds available is much lower than in other states. California offered $61 M this year for feature films while Georgia's uncapped tax credits reached $1.24 bn last year.
This year in California, only 15 films received the credit. It’s a big challenge to indie filmmakers who struggle to finance their films, who often go to other states that offer more generous tax credits to a larger pool of films, e.g., Georgia (68 features) or New Mexico (55 features).
For the CA tax credit, studio films receive the lion's share of the funds.
Here’s a breakdown:
$13.1 M for indie films
$48 M for studio films
Disney will receive $21.8 M for their Jon Favreau-directed The Mandalorian & Grogu. Disney will receive $28.1 M total, while Amazon will receive $14.4 M.
One of the other challenges with the credit is that only below-the-line expenditures qualify, unlike many other states.
Here’s a full list of the productions that received the credit.
Disney Studios president Sean Bailey exits. Bailey has brought in upwards of $7 bn for Disney.
Here are the top live-action films he’s overseen:
The Lion King (2019)
$1.66 bn
Beauty and the Beast (2017)
$1.2 bn
$1.05 bn
The Jungle Book (2016)
$962 M
Bailey stated:
“These 15 years at Disney have been an incredible journey, but the time is right for a new chapter. I’m deeply grateful to my exceptional team and proud of the slate and history we’ve built together.”