An Irish producer has said that US President Donald Trump's call for a 100% tariff on films made abroad was "deliberately timed".
Speaking on RTÉ News at One, Stephen Hall said the announcement is "probably intended to cause a little bit of panic".
The producer of the fantasy series 'The Wayfinders' said that he could not see how a 100% tariff would work.
However, he acknowledged that there is "absolutely less work in Hollywood".
"It is quite hard to compete with tax credits all over the world," said Mr Hall.
"Really, the move will be to incentivise people to come back rather than penalise."
He said that Mr Trump’s decision is "kind of shortsighted".
"I think the studios are not going to react positively to it," he said. "I think it's going to see similar reaction to the other tariffs that have been imposed."
Mr Hall said Ireland has a "really strong industry" and "we need to be really careful and deliberate in how we proceed".
Meanwhile, Minister for Arts Patrick O'Donovan said in a statement that "negotiations on trade are an EU competence and the European Commission is continuing to engage with the US administration in relation to tariffs".
"Tánaiste Simon Harris remains in close and ongoing contact with Commissioner Sefcovic on all aspects of this," he added.
"Naturally, as Minister responsible for the sector, I frequently engage with the film industry and I plan to continue our constructive and collaborative dialogue at our next engagement in the near future."
Trump says he wants movies 'made in America'
Mr Trump claimed Hollywood was being "devastated" by a trend of US filmmakers and studios working abroad in a post on Truth Social.
"This is a concerted effort by other Nations and, therefore, a National Security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda," he posted.
Mr Trump said he was authorising the relevant government agencies, such as the Department of Commerce, to immediately begin the process of imposing a 100% tariff on all films produced abroad that are then sent into the United States.
He added: "WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!"
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick posting on X said: "We're on it."
Neither Mr Lutnick nor the US President provided any details on how the tariffs would be implemented.
It was unclear if the tariffs would apply to movies on streaming services as well as those shown in cinemas, or if they would be calculated based on production costs or box office revenue.
Hollywood executives were trying to sort out details.
In January, Mr Trump appointed Hollywood veterans Jon Voight, Sylvester Stallone and Mel Gibson to bring Hollywood back "bigger, better and stronger than ever before".
Movie and TV production has been exiting Hollywood for years, heading to locations with tax incentives that make filming cheaper, with Ireland being one of many countries to benefit from these arrangements.
Governments around the world have increased credits and cash rebates to attract productions and capture a greater share of the $248 billion that Ampere Analysis predicts will be spent globally in 2025 to produce content.
All major media companies, including Walt Disney, Netflix and Universal Pictures, film overseas in countries such as Ireland, Canada and the UK.
A trade union in the UK has said that Mr Trump's plan to impose a 100% tariff on movies "could deal a knock-out blow" to the film sector there.
Philippa Childs, head of the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theatre Union (Bectu), said the UK industry is "only just recovering" from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, when many productions were delayed or cancelled.
She said that thousands of people are employed in the sector there and that the tariffs would be "really worrying news" for tens of thousands of freelancers who make films in the UK.
Ms Childs called on the British government to move "swiftly to defend this vital sector, and support the freelancers who power it".
In 2023, about half of the spending on movie and TV projects with budgets of more than $40 million went outside the US, according to research firm ProdPro.
Film and television production has fallen by nearly 40% over the last decade in Hollywood's home city of Los Angeles, according to Film LA, a non-profit that tracks the region's production.
Read more: Why it's cheaper to film in Ireland than Los Angeles (for now)
The January wildfires accelerated concerns that producers may look outside Los Angeles, and that camera operators, costume designers, sound technicians and other behind-the-scenes workers may move out of town rather than try to rebuild in their neighbourhoods.
Hollywood producers and labour unions have been urging California Governor Gavin Newsom to boost the state's tax incentives to better compete with other locations.
Over 850 TV and film productions have claimed Irish tax relief since 2016.
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Additional reporting PA
