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For several months, the sword of Damocles has loomed over the global film industry outside the United States, but it seems to have finally fallen: US president Donald Trump announced on Monday his intention to levy a 100% tax on foreign-made films.

Our film production industry has been taken from the United States of America by other nations, similar to ‘stealing candy from a baby.’ California, led by a weak and ineffective governor, has suffered the most!” Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social, stating: “Therefore, to address this long-standing, never-ending issue, I will be implementing a 100% tariff on all movies produced outside of the United States. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! President DJT.

In May 2024, Trump gave permission to the US Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative to impose a 100% tax on all films not made in the United States.

Representatives of the European film industry who spoke to Euronewsworried that they could be ignored by the EU during its trade talks with the US.

Since then,a commercial pact finalized in Julydid not reference the film industry – a sector not included in the 15% general tariffs imposed on all EU goods heading to the US.

The European film sector is under scrutiny from leading American streaming services, which argue that EU regulations overly favor the interests of the European entertainment industry.

The Motion Picture Association (MPA), which advocates for the US film, television, and streaming sectors, is targeting EU rules that mandate video-on-demand platforms active in the EU to allocate 30% of their content library to European productions and to fund projects created by EU countries. In March 2024, they had sent a letter to the Trump administration to support their position.

In 2023, 4.8 million films from Europe were shown in the United States, as reported by the European Audiovisual Observatory.

The European Commission has been contacted for a response.