The great trinity: who will be Trump's special envoys to Hollywood
On Wednesday, January 16, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump appointed three of his longtime supporters - actors Jon Voight, Sylvester Stallone and Mel Gibson - as special envoys to Hollywood. The leader attributed the decision to his desire to boost movie and television production. The actors will be his "eyes and ears" at the Dream Factory. More about why the choice fell on them and how the work on the movie business will be carried out - in the material "Izvestia".
"Bigger, better and stronger": the new appointment of Trump, the latest news
US President-elect Donald Trump appointed actors and directors Mel Gibson, Sylvester Stallone and Jon Voight as his special envoys in Hollywood. The leader made the announcement on January 16 on his Truth Social media page.
"I am honored to announce that Jon Voight, Mel Gibson and Sylvester Stallone will be my special envoys to a great but very troubled place - Hollywood (California). In that capacity, they will work to make it <...> bigger, better and stronger than ever before," the politician wrote.
Trump called the chosen special envoys his "eyes and ears" and emphasized that it will soon be a "golden age" for Hollywood again. The main task of the legendary trio will be to restore the Dream Factory, which over the past four years has lost many clients who switched to working with other countries.
The president-elect has a very uneasy relationship with much of Democratic Hollywood, where he is considered persona non grata. Many popular actors have repeatedly criticized him during movie awards ceremonies. One of the most glaring was actress Meryl Streep's speech at the 2017 Golden Globe Awards for her service to the industry. Streep several times hinted at the US President-elect without calling him by name, accusing him of humiliating other people and not taking into account national diversity.
It should be noted that today near the Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles continue large-scale fires, killed at least 24 people, burned expensive mansions of many movie stars. US President Joe Biden has declared a large-scale disaster mode in the state. According to estimates of the analytical company AccuWeather, the damage could be up to $275 billion, and one of the reasons for such powerful consequences was the unpreparedness of firefighters and other services of the state, which supported democratic slogans at the expense of efficiency.
Hollywood's problems: how the US is saving the movie industry
The movie industry has faced many challenges over the past five years, from a pandemic to a series of high-profile rallies. The spread of Covid-19 has led to significant downtime and production stoppages. In 2023, the industry faced strikes by writers and actors that lasted 118 days. Actors went on strike following the screenwriters' union, with their walkouts lasting more than six months.
According to the ProdPro platform, today the total movie production in the United States has decreased by 26% compared to 2021. Also, FilmLA, the official film office of the city and county of Los Angeles, estimated that the region has seen a 5.6% decrease in production since 2023, the lowest since 2020.
In addition, the number of shoots in Hollywood has also decreased as other countries poach producers to their market. Over the past couple of years, the UK has become one of the top filming locations for movies. Asian countries are also competing locations. For instance, Japan introduced an incentive program in 2023 that offers reimbursement of up to 50% of expenses in the country with a cap of $6.4 million.
On a related note, in October 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom proposed to expand the state's film and television tax incentive program to $750 million per year (instead of $330 million). If the bill is approved by the state legislature, it would take effect July 1, 2025. In this case, California will invest more money in the needs of movie production than any other state, except Georgia, which provides unlimited tax breaks.
However, Donald Trump himself has not yet announced what exactly he would like to change and how the chosen special envoys could realize his plans.
Why Trump chose Stallone, Gibson and Voight
Unlike most Hollywood celebrities supporting Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson and Jon Voight are staunch Trump fans.
Thus, 78-year-old Stallone called the US president-elect "the second George Washington". He noted that now the country is in the power of a really mythical character. According to the star of the "Rocky" movies, no one could do what Trump would accomplish.
Also in the 2024 election, Trump was supported by 69-year-old Gibson, while he called Harris "unintelligent" and noted that "she has an IQ like a fence post." The actor himself admitted that he learned about his new position from social media and was very surprised.
"Any chance this position will come with an ambassador's residence?", Gibson wrote.
Finally, Jon Voight, 86, star of "Midnight Cowboy" and "Enemy of the State" calls Trump "the greatest president since Abraham Lincoln" and actively shares his views.