Poll: Americans Divided On Hollywood's Georgia Boycott
According to a recent poll from The Hollywood Reporter, only 34% of respondents believed it was "appropriate" for production companies to boycott Georgia over the fetal heartbeat law, which protects unborn babies from abortion the moment doctors detect a heartbeat in the mother's womb.
"Many in the U.S. are divided on whether it is 'appropriate' for production companies to stop filming in Georgia," reports THR. "In a poll of 2,200 adults, 34% thought that the moratorium on production was 'appropriate' while 36% thought it was 'inappropriate' and 30% had no opinion."
Women were evenly split on the boycott: 32% in favor, 32% against, while another 35% had no opinion. A slightly greater percentage of men, 35%, supported the boycott, while 41% of men found it "inappropriate"; 24% had no opinion.
"Liberals were more likely to believe this action was called for (55%), while moderates were split and the majority of conservatives argued the action was inappropriate (63%)," THR notes.
Not that the poll matters anyway. As it turns out, the five production companies who pledged to boycott – Killer Films, Blown Deadline Productions, Duplass Brother Productions, Colorforce and CounterNarrative films – are complete outliers in this scenario. In a statement to THR, Chris Ortman, senior VP of Communications to the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), noted that Georgia brings significant economic prosperity to the entertainment industry.
"Film and television production in Georgia supports more than 92,000 jobs and brings significant economic benefits to communities and families," Ortman said. "It is important to remember that similar legislation has been attempted in other states, and has either been enjoined by the courts or is currently being challenged. The outcome in Georgia will also be determined through the legal process. We will continue to monitor developments."
Last week, directors Jordan Peele and J.J. Abrams both vowed to fight Georgia over the abortion law while continuing to have their new series, "Lovecraft County," filmed in the state.
"In a few weeks we start shooting our new show, 'Lovecraft Country' and will do so standing shoulder to shoulder with the women of Georgia," the directors said in a joint statement. "Governor Kemp's 'Fetal Heartbeat' Abortion Law is an unconstitutional effort to further restrict women and their health providers from making private medical decisions on their terms. Make no mistake, this is an attack aimed squarely and purposely at women."
Abrams went on to say that his company Bad Robot and Peele's Monkeypaw Productions will be donating funds to combat the legislation.
"We stand with Stacey Abrams and the hardworking people of Georgia, and will donate 100 percent of our respective episodic fees for this season to two organizations leading the charge against this draconian law: the ACLU of Georgia and Fair Fight Georgia," he said. "We encourage those who are able to funnel any and all resources to these organizations."
