Findings from economists about film subsidy programs are almost universally negative: It’s a race to the bottom with negligible economic benefits for the state where the biggest winner is Hollywood.
Consider Oklahoma. In 2023, the state was having its film moment. Major productions had been flocking to the region as it poured more and more money into its rebate program. The subsidies lured Reservation Dogs. Taylor Sheridan’s Tulsa King followed, as did Twisters.
An inflection point came when Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon rolled into town. The production transformed a Northern Oklahoma city to double as 1920s Fairfax, where the killings at the center of the $200 million epic occurred. Carpenters, set decorators and landscapers, among other crew, were hired for the makeover. The thinking for the financial incentives is that the state will see a major boost to its local economy by hosting big-budget movies
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