Former US President Donald Trump announced a plan to impose a 100% tariff on all films made outside the United States. He stated that Hollywood was being 'devastated' by US studios working abroad and that other countries were offering incentives to draw filmmakers away. Trump authorized the Department of Commerce and the United States Trade Representative to implement the tariff, posting on his Truth Social platform, 'WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!' Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick responded, saying, 'We're on it.'

Trump's announcement follows criticism of his aggressive trade policies, including tariffs on goods from China and other countries. China had previously announced it would reduce the number of US films it imported. Trump claimed the trend of production moving abroad was a 'National Security threat,' asserting that the movie industry in America was 'DYING a very fast death.' The implications of the tariffs and how they would be enacted were not immediately clear, with no mention of whether television series would be affected.

While Hollywood is a major sector of the US economy, generating over 2.3 million jobs and $279 billion in sales in 2022, the industry has been struggling to regain momentum after the Hollywood strikes and the COVID-19 pandemic, which changed movie consumption habits. A report indicated that the United States is a top filming hub with $14.5 billion in production spend, but this amount is a 26 percent drop compared to two years earlier. A survey of studio executives revealed that their top five preferred production locations for 2025 and 2026 were all outside of the United States, due to competitive tax incentive schemes, with Toronto, Britain, Vancouver, Central Europe, and Australia ranking higher than California.

Prior to leaving office in January, Trump appointed Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson, and Jon Voight as special envoys to Hollywood, aiming to make the entertainment industry 'STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE'. Trump has historically received limited support from the entertainment industry.

Trump stated, "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 also appointed three Hollywood veterans, Jon Voight, Sylvester Stallone and Mel Gibson, to bring Hollywood back “bigger, better and stronger than ever before.” According to former senior Commerce official, William Reinsch, retaliation against Trump’s foreign movie tariffs would be devastating.