MANDALORIAN Movie Lands $21.8 Million Tax Credit
By Movieguide® Contributor
California’s Film and Television Tax Credit Program offered THE MANDALORIAN & GROGU roughly $21.8 million in tax credits to shoot exclusively in the state.
These tax credits are part of California’s program to incentivize moviemakers to shoot in California and help the state’s economy. THE MANDALORIAN & GROGU is expected to spend $166 million on the local economy by hiring 500 crew members, 54 cast members and 3,500 background actors over 92 days of filming.
“We are thrilled to be shooting the next Star Wars movie… here in California,” a spokesperson for Lucasfilm said. “Working with the California Film Commission, we are proud to be creating film jobs in California and excited to start production, utilizing the world class crew available here.”
While Lucasfilm has yet to release specifics about the movie’s plot, it will focus on sacrifice and good vs. evil if it follows the show’s lead. A portion of Movieguide®’s review of season three of THE MANDALORIAN reads:
Chapters 23 and 24 of THE MANDALORIAN are an exciting book end to Din Djarin’s journey. The episodes feature amazing action, suspense and the triumph of good overcoming tyrannical evil. The lead characters exemplify teamwork, patriotism, working past one’s differences, and sacrifice. The episodes also feature a strong father-son relationship. However, there’s lots of strong action violence with two armies battling one another and heroes fighting the villain and his personal guards. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children.
The project is just one of many to receive financial help from the state through tax credits. The state’s program offers $330 million per year across all projects it affects. The most recent round of credits, totaling $61 million, was allocated across 15 movies.
Along with THE MANDALORIAN movie, other projects to receive a large credit include Amazon Studios’ THE ACCOUNTANT 2 ($10 million) and an untitled Disney live-action movie ($6.4 million).
While $61 million is a high price tag for the California government, it is well worth the cost of the investment. The 15 movies are expected to hire 2,252 crew members, 598 cast members, and 16,800 background performers for a total of 579 filming days. These projects are estimated to eventually return $408 million to the state’s economy.
“These productions, spanning big-budget features to indie films, not only infuse millions into our economy but also showcase our state’s talent and versatility,” said Colleen Bell, the executive director of the California Film Commission.
“We’re so proud to welcome these projects, highlighting California’s resilience and continued prominence in the film industry,” Bell added.
This boost in the industry is welcome, as the job market for actors has been extremely tight following the writers’ and actors’ strikes.
Movieguide® previously reported:
While Hollywood is back in full swing after last year’s dual strikes, actors who did not already have projects lined up are finding it harder than ever to land roles.
The entertainment industry has undergone an immense overhaul since the end of the writers and actors’ strikes last year. To comply with the new rules concerning actors’ pay, studios are bringing on fewer actors as regulars on shows.
“Fewer series regulars, more pressure to cast actors in recurring guest roles without series options, casting more local actors if the show is shooting in Atlanta, New York, Chicago or Canada to save money,” a casting director told Deadline.
“In many cases, when the series spends a lot of money for their series star(s) who anchor the show, that leaves very little money for the rest of the ensemble cast,” the casting director continued.
