By Jeremy Fuster

As part of a wide-ranging talk on the future of the entertainment industry at the Milken Institute Global Conference, four Hollywood executives discussed the future of film and TV production in the United States and specifically, in the studios’ backyard in California.

While Donald Trump’s social media float of “film tariffs” this past Sunday night was touched upon, the executives focused on the more concrete process winding through California’s legislature to expand the state’s tax credit program to make it more competitive with other production hubs that are pulling jobs from Hollywood’s local industry.

By Sharon Knolle

The Arts, Entertainment, and Media Industries (AEMI) coalition within AFL-CIO said it is prepared to fight back against Trump’s proposed cuts that would eliminate the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for Humanities (NEH), and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). 

Trump’s 2026 “Skinny” Budget Request went out last week, continuing his attacks on nonprofit arts organizations such as National Public Radio and PBS.

By Lucas Manfredi

Disney shares were trading nearly 10% higher on Wednesday after the company easily beat Wall Street expectations during the last quarter, swinging to a profit of $3.28 billion and growing revenue 7% to $23.6 billion.

The results for the January-to-March period, its fiscal second quarter, were driven by revenue growth across its entertainment, sports and experiences segments, according to its earnings report. It also saw 61% jump in entertainment profits and 9% increase in experiences profit, which were offset by a 12% decline in profits in its sports division, largely on a write-off cost.