DC fans are still grieving over the way brutal Australian tax laws put the kibosh on George Miller’s JLA movie, claiming the film did not have enough Australian content to justify the tax breaks needed to make such a costly film.
Now it seems these Aussie scumbags are endangering the Ryan Reynolds starring GREEN LANTERN film, according to Inside Film. This time, the culprit is the rising Australian dollar, which is up 16 percent since the movie plan was announced in April.
Warner Bros is understood to be negotiating with the NSW State Government to receive a higher level of concessions in an effort to claw back between $US15 and $US25 million in value eroded by the currency gains.
[snip] While most offshore productions lock in finance when a project is green-lit, it is understood that ongoing work on the Green Lantern script delayed that move. Pre-production on the film was originally scheduled for July and filming for November.
Something’s got to be done to prevent these down under spoilsports from blocking our God given right to get more DC movies made so we can complain about them on the internet! Have they no decency?
Just film it in Prague like every other cheap-o movie out there.
Or … heaven forbid … the US. I heard the value of the dollar ain’t doing so good these days.
Blame it on Canada!
Bring production to Michigan, and get a 40% “tax credit” from the state on the money spent here.
You are on fire today, Heidi!
Since when did the A in JLA stand for Australia?
Or, you know, they could just film GREEN LANTERN here in the U.S. and help California’s economy out a little.
Hey! We gave you the Joker didn’t we? Be nice or we’ll take… him…back. Never mind.
And Thor. Forget you not the Son of Odin!
//Oo/\
“Something’s got to be done to prevent these down under spoilsports from blocking our God given right to get more DC movies made so we can complain about them on the internet! Have they no decency?”
How about lowering the tax rate here in the States? Oh….wait.
@Jason: Who wants to see Hal Jordan patrol Detroit? He’d get mugged the first ten minutes he became the Green Lantern.
(Note to Detroit residents: I lived in that city for 20 years. Relax. Go Red Wings!)
Detroit could maybe corner the market on hosting post-apocalyptic movie shoots.
Film in Canada!
Isn’t most of the movie supposed to be in space?
Film the Earth stuff here and just green screen the rest. I’m sure wharehouses don’t cost that much to rent.
*ahem*
Michigan is much bigger than Detroit.
Not only do we have that one big festering urban landscape, we have farms and forests, we have plenty of sun in the summer and plenty of snow in the winter, we have quaint small towns and healthy urban centers, we even have lakes big enough to stand in for the ocean of your choice. Heck, with a little colorization, you could turn the Mackinac Bridge into the Golden Gate Bridge, and save a fortune compared to filming in the Bay Area.
“Since when did the A in JLA stand for Australia?”
LOL!!! :D
on the plus side, what a great time to be living in Oz and buying comical goodness from the states! (non-aussie living in Oz)
“Isn’t most of the movie supposed to be in space?”
So just film it in space, no taxes there!
Or y’know, actually pay taxes like the rest of us do. But I know that’s not how multinational corporations like to think…
Already giving Warners a fortune in tax concessions, and they want more? Why didn’t they hedge the currency instead of expecting we taxpayers of NSW to make it up? Give it to Queensland or back to California if you ask me.
Green screen it at the WB lot and call it a day. Keep the money in the US.
@Jason: My guess, though, is that most of the film crews and film studios in the state are located in the largest metropolitan area, i.e. Detroit. Illinois is also a big state, but I don’t see them filming Batman in Urbana-Champaign.
Studios are able to utilize much larger budgets for films if productions are made in Australia, it’s well known. Aside from tax breaks, the Australian gov’t matches a significant portion of shooting budgets (whatever the size) with their own tax revenues in exchange for a guarentee of X number of key positions in the film production going to Australian nationals. In a way, it makes for BETTER films, if having larger budgets means better effects, casting, production, hiring the sort of A-list writers who attract A-list directors, who in turn attract A-list stars, etc. But you need a certain number of Australians in key positions in the process in order to be eligible for the tax break from the Australian gov’t and the additional financing. I’m fine with this scheme (it is a scheme, as are all tax plans) for a few reasons– for one thing, there are tons of talented artists in Australia, tons of production studios, and tons of natural locations for filmmaking (Australia is a CONTINENT afterall) and this incentive program helps to legitimately foster a community of professional artists and developers in that part of the world. I don’t see any reason why film directors or movie stars etc. must be from the US.
Also, a film production brings revenue to not only the film’s production core, but also to the various local businesses who house, feed, and service the film production, which is good because it helps communities prosper in a peaceful and business-minded way. Various communities, cities, states and countries offer tax break incentives to studios in order to attract film production. If the US (specifically, states like California, cities like New York) lowered prohibitive tax rates, it would most certainly keep productions on (and bring productions to) US soil.
I’m with Jason. They just broke ground on the new studio in Allen Park MI which is right in the middle of every visual resource needed for a big production. And there are some great local comic stores in the area to supply directors with all of the visual references they need.
“If the US (specifically, states like California, cities like New York) lowered prohibitive tax rates, it would most certainly keep productions on (and bring productions to) US soil. ”
And then do what? Cut services for the people who live there?
Raise taxes on residents while cutting them for fly-by-night operations?
Or just keep borrowing?
Aussie scumbags ?
How about you go fuck yourself? does sound good loser?. The reason they are filmed in Australia in the first place is because it is cheaper the in the US to begin with. An so what if the the film studios have to use more australian content?!? you are using our country for your multi billion dollar films. So if you have to use Australians citizens as extras or for behind the scenes work than deal with in. I for one, am glad that the australian government are charging the US studios shit load of money! Your shit ‘a’ grade actors gets multi million dollar salaries for each movie, how about just paying them less? No wonder so many people cant stand americans.
@Faust: Yeesh. Chill out, man. I’m almost certain that comment was tongue in cheek.
PS Stay away from “Flight of the Conchords.” Their Australia-bashing might be too much for your blood pressure.
Faust, I guess I got a little too Ed Anger there for newcomers to the site. It was all a jokish tone, as the comment about “our God given right to get more DC movies made so we can complain about them on the internet ” was meant to show.
Why do they keep setting these movies up based on Australian tax breaks that they may not make?
Thanks for clarifying ‘The Beat’ ;) I saw the title and just saw red and got very protective for some reason!! My bad!! haha…. and when reading things on the internet (for me) its sometimes hard to tell when its meant to be sarcastic or not. :)
Yo, forget those sorehead kangaroos on the other side of the friggin’ world. Ain’t none o’ their girls got back in the Outback, anyway, so they can step off, ya’ll!
Just make the flicks in Canada like everyone else should (and does). It gets really cold up there, so they can always use the extra cash to buy hot chocolate.
Especially my scumbag Canadian relatives.