NEW YORK - Will Smith and director Antoine Fuqua have pulled production of their runaway slave drama “Emancipation” from Georgia over the state’s recently enacted law restricting voting access. In a joint statement, Smith and Fuqua — who are both producers on the project — said they felt compelled to move the production out of Georgia. “We cannot in good conscience provide economic support to a government that enacts regressive voting laws that are designed to restrict voter access,” Smith and Fuqua said. “The new Georgia voting laws are reminiscent of voting impediments that were passed at the end of Reconstruction to prevent many Americans from voting.”“Emancipation” had been scheduled to begin shooting in June. In 2019, a Georgia anti-abortion law (later declared unconstitutional) prompted studios to threaten to cease production in the state.

Source: thestar April 12, 2021 14:26 UTC