In a dramatic policy announcement on May 4, 2025, President Donald Trump declared on his Truth Social network, he will authorize the United States Trade Representative to impose a 100% tariff on all foreign-produced films imported into the country, invoking national security and economic protectionism as justifications.
The move harks back to trade policies last seen during and after World War II, when several nations, including the U.S., U.K., and France, imposed sweeping restrictions on foreign films to protect their domestic industries and manage postwar currency crises.
“The Movie Industry in America is DYING a very fast death… This is a concerted effort by other Nations and, therefore, a National Security threat,” Trump stated in a post on Truth Social.
“WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!”
A Return to Wartime Film Protections
In the 1940s and 1950s, policies such as:
The U.K.’s 75% import duty on foreign films in 1947, imposed to protect the British pound and support local studios. France’s 1946 Blum-Byrnes Agreement, which restricted the number of American films in French cinemas. Germany’s and Japan’s wartime bans on Hollywood imports, aimed at controlling cultural content during conflict.
These policies were often responses to foreign economic pressure, but also shaped the trajectory of national film industries for decades.
Implications for Today’s Global Film and Video Industry
The proposed U.S. tariffs could fundamentally reshape how international content reaches American audiences, affecting not just feature films but possibly:
Streaming content from platforms like Netflix and Amazon that produce or license foreign shows and movies. Music videos filmed overseas, especially in regions like the Caribbean and Latin America, which are major creative hubs for genres like dancehall, reggaetón, and afrobeats. Independent and art house films from countries like France, South Korea, Brazil, and Nigeria that rely on U.S. distribution for visibility and viability.
If enforced, the tariff could limit imports, raise costs for distributors, and disincentivize cross-border collaborations, especially with countries like Jamaica, where local filmmakers depend heavily on access to U.S. platforms and audiences.
There is no historical precedent for taxing intellectual property such as movies in this way. Enforcement could require the U.S. to tax digital licensing rights or penalize companies like Disney, Apple, or Warner Bros. for producing content abroad. It’s also unclear whether co-productions or U.S. films shot in Canada, the U.K., or the Caribbean would be targeted.
Global trade experts warn that the move could violate WTO agreements and invite reciprocal tariffs on U.S. cultural exports.
A Global Cultural Turning Point?
Much like the post-WWII era, where film tariffs redrew the cultural lines of cinematic influence, Trump’s proposed policy could signal a return to nationalist media economies. But in today’s interconnected streaming era, the implications are even broader—threatening not just economic models, but the global diversity of stories seen on American screens.
“The wrong action of the US government to abuse tariffs on China will inevitably further reduce the domestic audience’s favourability towards American films,” the China Film Administration said in a statement on April 10. “We will follow the market rules, respect the audience’s choice, and moderately reduce the number of American films imported.”
As with many of Trump’s policy declarations, the practical outcomes remain uncertain.
Streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Prime have invested heavily in Spanish-language content. Under Trump’s proposed policy, those investments might be reconsidered or face higher costs that are passed on to consumers or creators. According to a 2024 Variety report, Latin America is one of the fastest-growing content hubs globally; a U.S. tariff could destabilize that momentum.
