In the latest embarrassing blow to Los Angeles, the entertainment industry, and California Governor Gavin Newsom, the long-running TV show American Idol has announced that it is moving production to the state of Georgia.
California has lost dozens of major companies over the last several years but this one has really got to hurt.
If a contestant did well in an audition, the hosts used to say, “You’re going to Hollywood!”
Now they will have to tell these hopefuls that they’re going to Atlanta. It doesn’t have quite the same ring, does it?
The New York Post reports:
‘American Idol’ moving production out of Los Angeles in latest blow to Hollywood
“American Idol” is packing up Hollywood and heading across the country.
The long-running singing competition is relocating its production from Los Angeles to the greater Atlanta area ahead of its milestone 25th season. Fremantle, which co-produces the series alongside Sony Pictures Television’s 19 Entertainment, confirmed the major move to Deadline.
A primary driver behind the exit is Georgia’s lucrative tax incentive program, which offers up to a 30% tax credit for unscripted and reality television productions that spend a minimum of $500,000 in the state, the news outlet reported.
Hulu did not respond to The Post’s request for comment regarding the move. Fremantle and Simon Fuller’s 19 Entertainment, the production companies behind ‘American Idol,’ also did not respond.
First launched on Fox in 2002, the show spent 15 seasons as a ratings powerhouse in Los Angeles, driven by host Ryan Seacrest and original judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson.
Even in its fatigued 15th and final Fox season, the show averaged a 3.0 rating among adults 18–49 and 11.5 million viewers, according to the Billboard.
Take a bow, Governor Newsom.
Just another Hollywood production fleeing Gavin Newsom’s California
Why would President Trump do this? https://t.co/cODhOPyFn5
— Kevin Dalton (@TheKevinDalton) September 15, 2026
The Democrats who run California could stop this mass exodus of businesses and talent at any time, but they jut don’t seem willing.
All they have to do is make California more competitive.
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