Trump says he’s imposing 100% tariff on movies made outside of US

Tuesday, 30 September 2025

Donald Trump says he will slap a 100% tariff on movies made outside the US - a move that could see impacts in New Zealand.

The US president has little love for overseas cinema, saying the movie business “has been stolen” from Hollywood and the US.

“Therefore, in order to solve this long time, never ending problem, I will be imposing a 100% Tariff on any and all movies that are made outside of the United States,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

The tariff could slow down international productions filming in New Zealand.

It was unclear how these tariffs would operate, since movies and TV shows can be transmitted digitally without going through ports.

Nor was it clear what this would mean for globetrotting US movies that depend on foreign locations as part of the story, such as the James Bond franchise.

Nor was it clear what the legal basis would be for these import taxes. Trump has previously relied on national security grounds and an economic emergency in the form of trade deficits to justify his tariffs.

Trump first mentioned 100% tariffs on overseas films in May. Then, the director of Equity New Zealand, the union and organisation representing performers who work in New Zealand’s entertainment industries, said she was still “trying to get my head around how those tariffs would work”.

“I suppose he’s trying to offset the incentives other countries offer international screen production companies, for us here the Screen Production Rebate, with a disincentive – a tariff. But how does that get paid?” Denise Roche questioned.

“Production companies are very sensitive to anything that impacts their budgets so this could potentially slow down international productions filming in New Zealand. It is pretty slow at the moment and it is difficult to see how this would play out.”

– AP and Stuff