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By India McCarty
Texas will boost its movie and TV productions incentive program by $100 million as it works to compete with rivals like New Mexico and Georgia.
“Texas will be a new media coast,” Chase Musslewhite, co-founder of the advocacy group Media for Texas, told The Hollywood Reporter of the decision. “It’s cheaper. There’s no income tax. There’s great people down here, and it’s halfway between the east and west coasts.”
Gov. Greg Abbott passed a bill into law that will increase the current Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Program to $300 million every two years, up from $200 million. The bill also guarantees funding for a full decade.
“We were losing Texas stories to New Mexico, Louisiana and Georgia,” Musslewhite told Variety. “We want to shoot them in Texas.”
While this boost in funding doesn’t quite put Texas on the same level as states like California, New York and Georgia, it does put it on equal footing with states that boast many productions, like Louisiana and Pennsylvania.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who has made Texas’ production incentive program a priority, posted to Instagram that he has “worked with Taylor Sheridan, Matthew McConaughey, and other Texans on this project to promote Texas values, not Hollywood ones.”
McConaughey has also been a vocal supporter of the program, speaking to a Senate committee earlier this year about the importance of these incentives.
“You don’t want to help a movie get made in Texas that throws rocks at Texas or Texans,” he said. “Me neither.”
He also worked with peers and fellow Texans Woody Harrelson, Dennis Quaid, Billy Bob Thornton and Renée Zellweger for an ad for the True to Texas campaign, which supported the incentive program.
“Filming in Texas isn’t just about showcasing our stunning landscapes — it’s about creating jobs, boosting local economies, and building a thriving industry right here at home,” Quaid posted on Instagram. “I was proud to collaborate with Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Billy Bob Thornton, and Renée Zellweger to shine a spotlight on how Texas can lead the way in film production. I was also proud to have the great Nic Pizzolatto direct this spot.”
He continued, “Let’s keep the cameras rolling and the economy growing — because everything’s bigger (and better) in Texas!”
Related: Texas Looks to Expand Hollywood Presence by Increasing Entertainment Grants Budget
It looks like McConaughey and his pals’ work paid off — Texas’ decision to increase their incentive budget is making it a new hub of entertainment for Hollywood productions.
Read Next: Stars Want to Make Texas ‘The New Hollywood.’ Lawmakers Aren’t So Sure.
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