President Donald Trump announced this week his intention to implement a 100% tariff on all foreign-made films in order to promote domestic production in Hollywood and other filmmaking cities.
The president made the general announcement in a social media post on Monday, attacking California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Since announcing sweeping import tariffs earlier this year, Trump has mainly focused his tariff announcements on goods, as opposed to the services trade of filmmaking.
ABC News has reached out to the White House for further details on the plan, as well as SAG-AFTRA and the Motion Picture Association for further comment.
Below, read what you should know about Trump's film tariff announcement.
In a social media post Monday morning, Trump lamented the "United States movie making business," claiming it had been "stolen from the United States of America, by other Countries, just like stealing 'candy from a baby.'"
Trump also took aim at Newsom, denigrating the governor and writing that California had been "particularly hard hit!"
"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," he wrote.
Details on the mechanisms and logistics necessary to implement a tariff like this one remain unclear.
It's also unclear how and if the tariff will be implemented. As things stand now, experts say no clear system exists to qualify what makes a movie an "American" movie.
Lawmakers from regions known for film production greeted Trump's announcement Monday with a combination of rejection and optimism.
Newsom, who was the primary focus of Trump's social media post, reacted to the proposal in a social media post, writing, "You're already paying more for eggs, coffee, toys, shoes, electricity, furniture, cars, and flights. Now, Trump wants to raise taxes to see the movies. PAY MORE AND ENJOY NOTHING. That's Donald Trump's America."
California senator and frequent Trump opponent Adam Schiff also took to social media to draw attention to another way to increase domestic production.
"I strongly support bringing movie making back to California and the U.S.," Schiff wrote. "Congress should pass a bipartisan globally-competitive federal film incentive to bring back production and jobs, rather than levy a tariff that could have unintended and damaging consequences."
Rep. Laura Friedman, who represents California's 30th congressional district, home to several major studios, also spoke out following Trump's announcement, warning about the potential cost to consumers.
"I'm relieved President Trump recognizes that we are losing a signature American product: the domestic film & TV industry. However, his 100% tariff on foreign films will raise costs for consumers," she wrote on social media. "As the representative of nearly every major producer in Hollywood and a former film producer, I know what will work, without harming consumers: a national film tax credit. It's working in California and it will work across the country."
Canadian film producer Martin Katz told CTV News Monday that a retreat of U.S. production in the country would "leave a big big hole in the industry ... and throughout the world."
He pointed to the uncertainty productions created in the U.S. but shot overseas might face under such a policy.
"'White Lotus,' [which] a lot of people enjoy, is an entirely American show, conceived in America, produced in America, owned by America, you know, [but it] happens to be shot in spectacular locations around the world," he said. "It defies logic entirely that that kind of a show would attract some kind of tariff."
This is not Trump's first time floating the idea of a foreign film tariff. In May of this year, he suggested a similar tariff, writing on social media that the movie industry in America was "dying a fast death."
"Other Countries are offering all sorts of incentives to draw our filmmakers and studios away from the United States," he wrote at the time. "Hollywood, and many other areas within the U.S.A., are being devastated. This is a concerted effort by other Nations and, therefore, a National Security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda!"
He added that he was "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."
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick responded in his own social media post at the time, "We're on it."
In a statement shortly after, the White House said "no final decisions on foreign film tariffs have been made."
"...The Administration is exploring all options to deliver on President Trump's directive to safeguard our country's national and economic security while Making Hollywood Great Again," White House deputy press secretary Kush Desai told ABC News at the time.
The impact of the proposed film tariff remains unclear. The White House did not provide additional detail explaining exactly how a domestic film would be classified versus a foreign film.
In the case of consumer goods, importers typically pass a share of their tariff-related burden onto consumers in the form of price hikes.
Movie studios have increasingly moved production abroad in recent years as a means of cutting costs, experts told ABC News previously, and industry analysts said it remains unclear how adding a tariff would succeed in boosting domestic production.
Instead, it could send costs soaring, the analysts said. It could also reduce the number of Hollywood films produced each year and potentially increase ticket prices, they explained.
"Essentially, what Trump is trying to do is make it untenable for U.S. movie studios to produce movies abroad -- and the whole idea is that will stimulate production in the U.S.," S. Mark Young, an accounting professor at the University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business, who studies the movie industry, told ABC News earlier this year, after Trump first floated the idea of a foreign film tariff.
He added, "But it would cost more money for film production in the U.S. Where's that going to come from?"
