Hollywood Is Doing Us Dirty. Montana Movies Hardly Filmed In MT
rotten tomatoes classic via youtube, paramount pictures via youtube
More and more it seems Hollywood is using the Montana name to capture an audience. While they will gain profits in increased viewership, Montana gets stiffed because they don't actually film here and pay taxes.
It's kind of shady. T.V shows and movies that are set in "Montana" are rarely ever filmed here. Yellowstone is the big exception. Why would they do that? Why would you use a completely different landscape but claim to be in the Big Sky State? The answer is easy. Money. They can save literal millions in taxes by filming in another state, or even another country like Canada. This actually hurts our home state because, for the most part, these movies portray Montana as a paradise for out-of-staters to pack up and move to. So while our housing market and available housing become more and more scarce, and our wages are some of the lowest in the country, these Hollywood movies are bringing in remote workers that are buying and renting like never before. This leaves us long-time locals in a very tough spot, all while Hollywood doesn't have to contribute a dime in taxes that would help alleviate some of these problems. Here are some big shows and movies that claim the Montana state as part of their story, but aren't actually filmed here.
Manhunt: This drama series about the famous Lincoln, Montana, Unibomber was a huge hit for Netflix. Now while we're not proud to have a mass murderer from our home state, the tax money and income from shooting should have gone a long way. "Manhunt" was actually filmed down south in Georgia. A state that isn't even close to the landscape of Lincoln, Montana.
Shooter: Here is the basic setup. Mark Wahlberg plays an ex-marine that gets set up to take the fall for a fake assassination attempt. The main man behind the plot is a Montana senator. Mark goes after him starting in Bozeman, and then to his cabin in the woods. Guess what? It was all filmed in Canada. Montana got zero love in this flick.
Cut Bank: This movie boasts a hit list of actors like Liam Hemsworth, Billy Bob Thorton, and John Malkovich. It's a murder mystery thriller that takes place in, you guessed it, Cut Bank. Do you know where it's not filled? Ding! You're right again. It's actually all filmed in Canada.
Chill Factor: Cuba Gooding Junior finds himself in the possession of a deadly virus and he has to keep it to a certain degree or it will be released and kill millions all while transporting it in Montana and being chased by villains. Basically, Speed with the bad flu. None of it was actually filmed in Montana, but in Utah and South Carolina instead.
Sonic The Hedgehog: You know the movie. The crazy super fast blue-haired ball that can run like lightning. It was a super fun game as a kid, and then they went and turned it into a movie. It takes place in the fake town of Green Hills, Montana. When in actuality it is actually filmed in, you guessed it, Canada.
I don't know about you but I'm getting tired of our state being exploited and not even getting the courtesy of paying the fair share of taxes for doing it.