Stacey Abrams wants Hollywood execs to stay in Georgia and fight abortion legislation

The former Democratic gubernatorial candidate from Georgia wants Hollywood execs with productions in the state to fight abortion laws there instead of leaving

Stacey Abrams is in a fighting mood. The Georgia gubernatorial challenger to elected Gov. Brian Kemp is headed to Hollywood to try and convince studio executives, peeved at Kemp’s support of legislation that would ban a...

Dawn Onley

Jun 3, 2019

[griojw id=”GErLsumq” playerid=”GqX43ZoG”]

Stacey Abrams isn’t done fighting her opponent from the last Georgia election.

The 2018 gubernatorial challenger to Republican incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp is headed to Hollywood to try and convince studio executives, peeved at his support of legislation that would ban abortions after six weeks, to #StayAndFight. The initiative is a nod to a movement she and her allies support that pushes Hollywood to donate funds to political candidates and groups challenging the abortion ban instead of fleeing the state.

Kemp was scheduled to meet with Hollywood execs last month but postponed his meeting until the fall amid widespread fallout over his support of the ban.

Abrams and Ilyse Hogue, the president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, will fly out to meet with Hollywood leaders on June 11, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Abrams said Georgia needs Hollywood’s support now more than ever.

Fallout over the “heartbeat” law puts the #StayAndFight movement “in a unique position to fight back — not only against the legislation here but the legislation around the country — and to fund the defeat of these politicians and their horrible behavior,” Abrams told the Times.

Notable Hollywood actors and producers have pledged to boycott Georgia of the abortion ban becomes law in January. In addition, many movie studios also vowed to pull out of the state if the legislation is enacted.

Meanwhile Kemp is taking a hard approach on the issue and doesn’t appear to be caving.

“If there are some in the entertainment industry who don’t want to invest here, there are others who will,” Kemp told the Savannah Morning News recently. “There are a fair amount of Georgia citizens who disagree with us giving them money — through the tax incentives — to begin with.”

Former CBS Chairwoman Nina Tassler sent Abrams the invite to discuss the “reality that employees in the state may not have full access to healthcare or the freedom to make decisions about their futures and their families.”

“Many of us have projects in the state. I know it’s complicated,” Tassler wrote in the invite. “There’s lots of money and jobs at stake – for us and for the people of Georgia.”

More than 90,000 people work in the movie industry in Georgia, spread out over numerous artistic business ventures. One highlight that makes Georgia so attractive to studio execs is the film tax incentives that Georgia legislators provide.