Are Donald Trump’s film tariff threats making investors ‘dither’ in UK?
At West London Film Studios – where major productions from Bridget Jones’s Baby to Killing Eve have all filmed – while Apple TV+’s Ted Lasso is currently being shot in one of their 10 sound stages (across two sites), it pains owner Frank Khalid that one of his biggest stages is empty.
But he has a theory as to why – Donald Trump’s social media posts threatening tariffs on films made outside the US.
“Prior to [Trump] posting that we had quite some big major features come to us looking for space,” he says, “and it’s just gone very quiet since he posted… maybe it’s a coincidence, I don’t know, but I believe it has affected us.”
Frank Khalid, owner of West London Film Studios
In September, on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump wrote that America’s “movie making business has been stolen….by other countries…like…’candy from a baby’.”
Repeating a threat he’d first made last May, he claimed he’d authorised his government departments to put a “100% tariff on any and all movies that are made outside of the United States”.
For bigger studios, like Pinewood and Elstree, block-booked years in advance by the major movie producers, his words haven’t had any immediate effect.
But, at smaller studios, like Khalid’s, he certainly feels like there’s been a ripple effect.
“We had a letter from one major big American production saying [the tariff] is not possible, [Trump] legally can’t do it… but at the end of the day, he doesn’t have to do it, the damage is done, isn’t it? By him just posting that… the confidence in the market goes down.”
As Jon Wardle, director of the National Film and Television School, explains, the industry has “always been a bit feast or famine, and we’re in a slight lull… it’s not quite the boom of what it was in 2022 after COVID, but probably at that point we were making a few too many projects.”
Jon Wardle says the UK ‘needs to be more committed to homegrown talent’
Wardle says, Trump’s threatened tariffs are certainly likely to make film companies “slightly more nervous” and “dither a bit more” when it comes to signing off on projects a few years down the line.
But he says it’s important to remember that US studios have “invested hugely” in the UK.
“Disney has a 10-year lease at Pinewood, Amazon has a 10-year lease at Shepperton, the investment for those companies is massive. And the other part of this is that it’s not going to be cheaper to make those films in America. In fact, it’ll be more expensive.”
West London Studios has 194,000 square feet of production space and is one of the UK’s leading independent studios
While the UK industry appears to be finding its feet after the knock-on effects of COVID shutdowns and the US writer’s strike, some smaller studios say Trump’s tariff threats are certainly on their radar.
Farnborough International Studios told us that while it has “recently hosted major TV series for companies such as Paramount and Amazon”, it has “seen film bookings and enquiries slowing down since the first sign of imposed tariffs”.
While West Yorkshire’s Production Park said they’d “not seen any slowdown”, a spokesperson for their studios said they are “tracking wider policy changes that could affect us”.
Mr Wardle says: “I think is it’s a good warning to the UK industry. I think the UK needs to take more seriously the commitment to its own homegrown talent. How do you make projects that aren’t funded and paid for by Americans or another nation?”
This year’s London Film Festival
With little detail for now, few working within the industry can fathom how a tariff would deliver the happy ending of shoots returning to Hollywood that Donald Trump might desire without driving up costs and stifling investment.
“There’s a huge number of questions about how you actually make tariffs work,” Mr Wardle explains. “It seems like a silly example, but production accountants: we train production accountants and nowhere else in the world does… we planted those seeds 20 years ago and we’re now reaping the rewards.
“It’s not going to be cheaper to make those films in America… so they’ll just make less.”
While Number 10 awaits full details of the latest US tariffs and their potential impact on the UK, a government spokesperson said: “Our film industry employs millions of people, generates billions for our economy and showcases British culture globally. We are absolutely committed to ensuring it continues to thrive and create good jobs right across the country.”
Listen below to Trump100 from May where we discuss Trump’s tariff threat:
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The madness of trying to second-guess what the president might mean becomes all too apparent at an event like this year’s London Film Festival.
Mr Wardle explains: “There are films in this festival that were made in Britain and in the US, made physically in terms of the shoot in London, post-produced in Canada, with VFX done in India…. how do you apply tariffs? At what point do you do that?”
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On the red carpet, actor Charles Dance – who stars in Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein – questioned Trump’s knowledge of filmmaking.
“I don’t think he is generally known for his own understanding of culture,” he said, “this is a man who wants to concrete over the Rose Garden.”
Rian Johnson, director of the Knives Out franchise, said it was “dark times right now in the States, for a lot of reasons”.
“All we can do is keep making movies we believe in, that matter, that say things to audiences… I think we need more of that so we’ll keep forging ahead as long as we’re able,” he said.
Entertainment
Sally Rooney tells court new books may not be published in UK due to Palestine Action ban
Irish author Sally Rooney has told the High Court she may not be able to publish new books in the UK, and may have to withdraw previous titles from sale, because of the ban on Palestine Action.
The group’s co-founder Huda Ammori is taking legal action against the Home Office over the decision to proscribe Palestine Action under anti-terror laws in July.
The ban made being a member of, or supporting, Palestine Action a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Rooney was in August warned that she risked committing a terrorist offence after saying she would donate earnings from her books, and the TV adaptations of Normal People and Conversations With Friends, to support Palestine Action.
In a witness statement made public on Thursday, Rooney said the producer of the BBC dramas said they had been advised that they could not send money to her agent if the funds could be used to fund the group, as that would be a crime under anti-terror laws.
Rooney added that it was “unclear” whether any UK company can pay her, stating that if she is prevented from profiting from her work, her income would be “enormously restricted”.
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Why was Palestine Action proscribed?
She added: “If I were to write another screenplay, television show or similar creative work, I would not be able to have it produced or distributed by a company based in England and Wales without, expressly or tacitly, accepting that I would not be paid.”
Rooney described how the publication of her books is based on royalties on sales, and that non-payment of royalties would mean she can terminate her contract.
“If, therefore, Faber and Faber Limited are legally prohibited from paying me the royalties I am owed, my existing works may have to be withdrawn from sale and would therefore no longer be available to readers in the UK,” Rooney added, saying this would be “a truly extreme incursion by the state into the realm of artistic expression”.
Rooney added that it is “almost certain” that she cannot publish or produce new work in the UK while the Palestine Action ban remains in force.
She said: “If Palestine Action is still proscribed by the time my next book is due for publication, then that book will be available to readers all over the world and in dozens of languages, but will be unavailable to readers in the United Kingdom simply because no one will be permitted to publish it, unless I am content to give it away for free.”
Sir James Eadie KC, barrister for the Home Office, said in a written submission that the ban’s aim is “stifling organisations concerned in terrorism and for members of the public to face criminal liability for joining or supporting such organisations”.
“That serves to ensure proscribed organisations are deprived of the oxygen of publicity as well as both vocal and financial support,” he continued.
The High Court hearing is due to conclude on 2 December, with a decision expected in writing at a later date.
Entertainment
Creator of AI actress Tilly Norwood addresses claims she’ll ‘steal jobs’ from real stars
Prince William wasn’t close to being born when Fawlty Towers first aired – but now even his children have fallen in love with it.
The Prince of Wales, 43, revealed his kids’ love of the classic British sitcom – which first aired in 1975 – during a conversation with star John Cleese.
The pair shared a few words at the Tusk Conservation Awards at London’s Savoy Hotel on Wednesday night, which honoured those safeguarding the habitats and animals of Africa.
William told Cleese they were having “a lot of family laughs” watching the show, and his children “love it”.
The Prince of Wales and John Cleese were among those attending the Tusk Conservation Awards. Pics: PA
The future king said he has also been “reminiscing” on the series and enjoying it “all over again”.
“It’s brilliant,” he added.
After their chat, Cleese said of Fawlty Towers: “I always explain it’s about ‘who’s scared of who’ and kids pick that up immediately. And mine, all those years ago, grew up watching it.”
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The veteran comic actor – an ambassador of the trust – was joined by his wife Jennifer Wade, and fellow ambassador Ronnie Wood, the Rolling Stones guitarist.
Other guests were Zara Tindall and husband Mike, and William’s cousins Lady Amelia and Lady Eliza Spencer.
Winners included Laban Mwangi, a head ranger working in Kenya; Rahima Njaidi, who has established a Tanzanian community-led forest conservation network; and Kumara Wakjira, who was honoured for his work in Ethiopia.
William said they “should inspire us to drive change”.
He added: “If we all want to continue to enjoy and benefit from the wonders of the natural world we must not be the generation that stands by as wildlife and biodiversity disappears.
“What we choose to do will have an impact on future generations, and tonight we must choose to do more.”
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