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Ben Affleck may play an accountant on screen, but it turns out he's also really good at crunching numbers off camera.
When Affleck appeared on the red carpet for the screening of The Accountant 2 on Wednesday, he did more than simply chat about movies; he also discussed California's film and TV tax incentive program.
According to the actor-producer, California policymakers may have become overly complacent with the entertainment industry's continued existence.
"They came to take this industry for granted a little bit," Affleck told the Associated Press.
And he isn't simply throwing out ideas; he has data to back them up. Just last week, FilmLA announced that shoot days in Greater Los Angeles decreased by 22.4% in the first quarter alone.
Affleck did offer a nod to Governor Gavin Newsom's latest plan, which proposes more than tripling the state's existing $330 million per year in incentives to $750 million beginning in fiscal 2025-2026.
But, according to Affleck, California still has a lot of catching up to accomplish.
"The percentage of what you get back in terms of the actual budget doesn't compete with places like England, which is why you see a lot of these big, huge movies shoot in the U.K."
Not stopping there, Affleck listed several states that are winning the Hollywood production sweepstakes with better deals, including Georgia, New Jersey, and Louisiana, all of which have better exchange rates or tax breaks.
And it appears that his timing is exactly on.
His comments came just days before the California Senate takes up SB 630 and another legislation that may change the state's film industry incentives.
If approved, the measures would increase the possible credit for individual projects spent in Los Angeles from 20% to 35%, with the California Film Commission having the option of adding an additional 5% in designated economic opportunity zones.
Ben Affleck isn't just starring in The Accountant 2; he's performing the math for the whole industry.
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