Bectu has called on the government to “move swiftly” to avoid a "knockout blow" to the UK film industry after Donald Trump raised the prospect of introducing 100% tariffs on films made outside the US.
In a statement, the US president said he wanted to impose an immediate levy on “any and all movies coming into our country that are produced in foreign lands”.
He said America’s film industry is dying “a very fast death” and described international incentives to bring production to other countries as “a concerted effort by other nations and, therefore, a national security threat”.
However, Trump was light on detail of how they would be applied.
He did not say, for example, whether it would apply to US productions that were filmed in other countries - Disney's Oscar-nominated Wicked [pictured] was largely shot at Sky Studios Elstree, for example - nor whether it would apply to films made for streaming services like Netflix, Apple TV+ or Amazon Prime.
Nor did Trump mention TV, though observers expect that any such measures would also include high-end drama series made by US producers but shot in the UK, such as Netflix’s Bridgerton.
However, with the British Film Institute calculating that 86% of the total spend on film and high-end TV made in Britain came from international sources last year, Bectu warned the tariffs could “deal a knockout blow” to a UK industry already reeling from a slowdown in production.
Union chief Philippa Childs said: “The government must move swiftly to defend this vital sector, and support the freelancers who power it, as a matter of essential national economic interest."
Speaking to Radio 4’s Today programme, Vue cinema founder Tim Richards underlined that the issue stretched far beyond financing.
"One of the reasons UK has done so well is we have some of the most highly experienced and skilled film and production crew in the world,” he said, adding: "The devil will be in the details."
The UK government said it was "absolutely committed" to the film sector and would outline its plans in its upcoming Creative Industries Sector Plan.
Jon Voight’s plan
According to Los Angeles trade body Film LA, film production had fallen by almost 30% in the first three months of 2025, while 2024 was the second least productive year behind 2020 when the pandemic hit the industry.
Actor Jon Voight, one of Trump’s three ‘special ambassadors’ to Hollywood along with Sylvester Stallone and Mel Gibson, today published his plan to revive the US film industry.
His submission to Trump outlined co-production treaties with other countries, federal tax incentives for production and post-, and infrastructure subsidies for owners of production firms and cinemas.
Voight also said tariffs could be implemented “in certain limited circumstances”.
“We look forward to working with the administration, the unions, studios and streamers to help form a plan to keep our industry healthy and bring more productions back to America,” he said.
“Many Americans have lost jobs to productions that have gone overseas. [We] have brought forward recommendations to the President for certain tax provisions that can help the industry, some provisions that could be extended and others that could be revived or instituted.
“This would help the movie and television production and our beloved [movie] theatres that are so important to the American family experience.”
