Will Smith's Movie 'Emancipation' Ditches GA Over New Voting Law

ATLANTA, GA — Antoine Fuqua and Will Smith are moving production of their latest film, "Emancipation," out of Georgia in protest over the state's controversial new voting law passed in late March.

The slavery-era thriller, produced and financed by Apple Studios, is the first major production to cite the law as a reason to halt production in Georgia, a state known as a dominant film and entertainment hub with generous tax incentives for Hollywood productions. Voting rights activists, as well as President Joe Biden and newly-elected Sen. Raphael Warnock, likened the bill to "Jim Crow in the 21st Century."

The new law shortens the duration of absentee voting, requires absentee voters to produce identification, limits the use of drop boxes and makes it a punishable crime to hand out free food or water to voters in line within a certain distance of polling locations.

RELATED: Election Law Restricts Absentee Voting, Weakens Sec. of State

Deadline.com broke the news first Monday.

Smith and Fuqua released the following statement to Deadline:

“At this moment in time, the Nation is coming to terms with its history and is attempting to eliminate vestiges of institutional racism to achieve true racial justice. We cannot in good conscience provide economic support to a government that enacts regressive voting laws that are designed to restrict voter access. The new Georgia voting laws are reminiscent of voting impediments that were passed at the end of Reconstruction to prevent many Americans from voting. Regrettably, we feel compelled to move our film production work from Georgia to another state.”

The announcement comes in the wake of several lawsuits against the state over the new law; the threat of a boycott of major Atlanta-based companies like Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines and The Home Depot; and the recent relocation of Major League Baseball's All-Star Game from Atlanta to Denver, Colorado.

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms posted "....and the dominos continue to fall..." on Twitter after the news broke about "Emancipation" pulling out of filming in Georgia.

....and the dominos continue to fall...https://t.co/kchGNqlHif
— Keisha Lance Bottoms (@KeishaBottoms) April 12, 2021

"Emancipation" was scheduled to begin filming June 21 starring Smith as a real-life enslaved man named Peter, who emancipated himself from a Southern plantation and joined the Union Army, according to the New York Times. Peter's story became famous after pictures of his back covered in whipping scars appeared in Harper's Weekly in 1863.

Georgia still has about 60 active productions listed on the Georgia film office site, despite celebrities calling for a boycott of filming in the state, including "Star Wars" actor Mark Hamill.

ABSOLUTELY! #NoMoreFilmingInGeogia https://t.co/VsKLEkXhEf
— Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) March 27, 2021

RELATED:

• AME Church, Faith Leaders Pause Georgia Corporation Boycott
• SPLC, NAACP, ACLU Sue Georgia Over New Elections Laws
• Kemp Says MLB Caved To Fear In Moving All-Star Game From Atlanta
• Corporations Chime In On GA Election Law After The Fact

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