Lorin Williams September 23rd, 2021 - 4:01 PM
Texas’ new controversial abortion law has forged its first repercussion from the entertainment industry. CNN reports TV scribe David Simon (The Wire, We Own This City) has moved his upcoming HBO series out of the Lone Star State. The yet announced project was planning to shoot in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
According to CNN, Simon announced his decision on Twitter, citing that his choice went “beyond politics.” Simon described as an employer, he could not ask female members of his crew and cast “to forgo civil liberties to film there.”
If an employer, this is beyond politics. I’m turning in scripts next month on an HBO non-fiction miniseries based on events in Texas, but I can’t and won’t ask female cast/crew to forgo civil liberties to film there. What else looks like Dallas/Ft. Worth? https://t.co/q6Py6XikYh
— David Simon (@AoDespair) September 20, 2021
Texas’ new law, signed by Governor Gregg Abbott, seeks to ban any abortion after six weeks, via CNN. It also allows any citizen other than government officials to sue any provider accused of violating the said ban. In recent days, Florida has announced they are seeking to implement a similar law, via CNN.
Simon’s announcement did not go unchecked. In the tweet below, he responded to a random tweeter who described the biggest cities in Texas as being “bastions of Blue,” presumably to challenge Simon’s political stance. Simon retorted again that politics had nothing to do with their decision to move the filming elsewhere.
Love Austin and San Antonio. Even like Houston some. And you are blissfully unaware that this is not a political decision for us; we can’t ethically ask any female cast/crew to relocate to any state that requires them to forgo civil liberties. The end. https://t.co/j5WVrr7hfp
— David Simon (@AoDespair) September 22, 2021
The Dallas Film & Creative Industries Office also responded, quote re-tweeting Simon’s initial tweet with concerns of how these actions prevent their citizens from being gainfully employed. But Simon did not budge from his stance, explicitly highlighting how his decision is not rooted in any “boycott.”
.@AoDespair -Laws of a state are not reflective of its entire population. Not bringing a production to Dallas (a big “D”) only serves to further disenfranchise those that live here. We need talent/crew/creatives to stay & vote, not get driven out by inability to make a living. https://t.co/DxD46z0nNu
— Dallas Film & Creative Industries Office (@DallasCommish) September 20, 2021
You misunderstand completely. My response is NOT rooted in any debate about political efficacy or the utility of any boycott. My singular responsibility is to securing and maintaining the civil liberties of all those we employ during the course of a production. https://t.co/cSKZu08uOO
— David Simon (@AoDespair) September 20, 2021
CNN reports the series is a fact-based tale set in Texas, but no other details are available at this time. Simon’s latest project is another HBO project. Set for HBO Max, the limited series, We Own This City, is a true-crime drama centered on the rise and fall of Baltimore’s corrupt drug task force.
