A victim of cost and convenience, Whittier will not be hosting the big-budget submarine thriller “Hunter Killer.” State Senator Bill Stoltze sponsored a bill to end Alaska’s film tax credits which passed the Senate yesterday.
Thomas Daly, President of the Alaska Film Group, said the film will take its $80 million and Hollywood stars Gerard Butler, Billy Bob Thornton, and Willem Dafoe to a quieter location…
Daly: “Relativity Media likes to come in, do a project quietly and get it done, so they can get it into post-production and get it out there and they just found themselves in the spotlight and in the center of a battle and they didn’t like it. So between that and the insecurity that the State of Alaska injects into the industry with the unstable environment they’re providing, they chose to leave the state and they’re going to shoot that in Louisiana now.”
Daly said the film will use computer animation to create an Arctic landscape.
Senator Stoltze said his bill the end the program isn’t to blame for Hunter Killer’s withdrawal; he blames the Governor’s decision to defund the office which dealt with the credits. But Daly says he prefers the Governor’s approach, since there’s still hope for a future agreement so long as the program remains alive.
Daly: “We’re hopign to hear from the Senators and the Legislators and the Representatives as to what the State of Alaska needs. Then, if SB 39 is not passed, we can amend the current program and give the State what they believe they need for a return on investment or a stream of income.”
The bill now goes to the House for consideration.