California doles out over $100M in taxpayer money to massive film studios

The state of California is handing out boatloads of cash to some of the biggest money-making studios in the world.

The money comes from the California Film Commission, which, in addition to providing tax credits for studios that rake in revenue, has a robust incentive program for productions that push diversity, equity, and inclusion.

‘The state also pushes productions to acquire suppliers based on their diversity.’

Dollars to doughnuts

As part of its $750 million annual industry push, the commission’s funding is not limited to independent films or smaller studios, but tens of millions are actually allocated to big-budget studios that have a history of massive revenues.

Chiefly in this instance, Variety has reported that a sequel to “The Simpsons Movie,” currently titled “The Simpsons Movie 2,” will receive $21.9 million in state funding as California has expanded into supplementing animation production.

The 20th Century Studios production is set for a release 20 years after the original hit movie, which took in $183 million domestically and $536 million worldwide against a $75 million budget.

While TV revenues are tight-lipped, it’s estimated that each episode generates between $3 and $5 million. It should go without saying that the longest-running American scripted primetime series is not hurting for cash.

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Alms for the A-list

Other major production houses getting a boost from the state include Netflix, which will get $10.9 million for a reboot of “13 Going on 30,” while an untitled Disney live-action movie will get over $18 million.

DreamWorks, which reportedly took in over $900 million in 2024, will also get a credit of nearly $25 million from California.

At the same time, Paramount will get just under $26 million; they took in a reported $28.75 billion in 2025.

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Chris Polk/FilmMagic/Getty Images

DEI on the prize

The film commission also sports a complex DEI program that offers tax credits in exchange for pushing its ideology on the production staff of any given project.

The state provides a checklist for productions to ensure they know to perform inclusive hiring, equity education, and “industry capacity building” to “increase an inclusive and qualified workforce.”

The state also pushes productions to acquire suppliers based on their diversity.

California’s “success roadmap” also shows that productions must issue “mandatory DEIA orientation,” with the added letter in the acronym for “accessibility.”

For live-action films, this must be done before principal photography begins, while animation has to show its DEI work within 120 days of production.

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