Emancipation, the runaway-slave thriller starring Will Smith and directed by Antoine Fuqua that Apple acquired for US$120 million in a bidding war is the first major production to leave Georgia because of its revised voting laws, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Fuqua and Smith made the announcement today via the following statement: “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 drama was to have begun production June 21, 2020.
