US Film Incentive Bill Includes Unscripted TV Series
Unscripted series have won a place in America's proposed federal production incentive.
Lawmakers in the United States Congress introduced the Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act on 24 September 2026. The bill covers unscripted television, meaning shows made without actors following scripts, from reality and documentary series to true crime and competition formats, Deadline reported.
To qualify, an unscripted series must run to at least four episodes, cost more than $1M and complete at least 75% of its production in the United States. Gameshows are out. The thresholds draw a clear line around returning series with a substantial American shoot.
The wider bill offers a tax credit, meaning a direct cut to a production's tax bill, of at least 20% on the wages of workers who make films and TV shows, according to The New York Times. Earlier drafts described a 20% incentive with bonuses that could lift support to 30%, Variety reported. The stated aim is to entice productions to remain in the United States rather than move abroad, as NPR reported.
In the Senate, the Act was sponsored by Tim Scott of South Carolina and Adam Schiff of California, with a number of House members also backing it. Bipartisan lawmakers had been expected to introduce the legislation on 24 September.
Inclusion of unscripted was not automatic. A group of unscripted producers and trade organisations spent much of the summer lobbying for it. Without that push, reality and documentary crews could have been left outside a bill built mainly around scripted film and television.
That effort was led in part by NPACT, the trade body for nonfiction producers, and its general manager Michelle Van Kempen. Van Kempen held conversations with the Motion Picture Association, Film USA and congressional offices including those of Scott and Schiff. Shawn Moffat, who runs Media Content Services and Ghost Adventures producer My Entertainment, was another key figure in the talks.
NPACT was formed in 2017 through the merger of the Nonfiction Producers Association and PactUS. It represents producers including Bunim-Murray, Kinetic Content, Lionsgate Alternative TV and Studio Lambert.
The bill arrives after months of pressure for federal action. On 31 August, Donald Trump urged Congress to immediately approve a Federal Production Incentive to create entertainment jobs in America, Reuters reported. Until now the Section 181 tax deduction was described as the only federal tax incentive for domestic film, television and sound recording projects.
For viewers, this means jobs behind shows they already watch. An unscripted series still employs camera crews, editors, story producers and local labour. This bill decides whether more of that work stays in the United States.
