Netflix breaks ground on $900M movie studio at former NJ army base

Netflix officially broke ground this week on a sprawling new $900 million production hub in central New Jersey — with more than a third of the funding coming from tax credits provided by the Garden State.

Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth will transform a long-abandoned US Army base into a 500,000-square-foot facility housing soundstages, a backlot, post-production suites and offices.

The deal to build the new campus in Eatontown — marking a significant East Coast expansion for the video streaming giant — was boosted by $387 million in tax credits, according to state officials.

New Jersey’s film and digital media tax credits offer up to 35% for production expenses and up to 40% for digital post-production — figures Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos cited as critical to the company’s investment.

California’s status as the nation’s film hub has been eroded in recent years as studios have opted to film movies in lower-tax locales such as Georgia and the United Kingdom.

“We’re kicking California’s ass,” New Jersey State Sen. Declan O’Scanlon told The Hollywood Reporter, underscoring the state’s aggressive push to attract film and television production.

O’Scanlon, a Republican who represents Monmouth County, admitted he was initially skeptical of the tax credit program. He then delivered a rare political confession: “I was wrong.”

Sarandos, speaking from a stage on the rain-soaked site, described the project as both a passion and a business decision.

“I was in love with this idea from the very first conversation with Gov. [Phil] Murphy,” Sarandos said.

Sarandos added that the company expects “that these studios will create thousands of jobs for New Jersey residents, billions of dollars of economic output and many cultural benefits for the region and for the state.”

Though born in New Jersey, Sarandos emphasized that the decision to build in the Garden State was based on economics, not sentimentality.

According to an April report by ProdPro, New Jersey now ranks sixth in the US for film and TV production, with $536 million in spending over the past year, trailing only California, New York, Illinois, New Mexico, and Georgia.

Murphy, who was seated in a Netflix-branded director’s chair during the ceremony, called the state’s film incentive program “the single best in the entire country.”

He noted that the program has already been extended through June 30, 2039.

“This is not about us,” Murphy said. “This is about generations to come.”

Netflix already has seven productions filming in New Jersey and is expected to significantly ramp up activity once the Fort Monmouth facility is complete, projected to be in 2028.

Monmouth County Commissioner Director Thomas Arnone promised the company a streamlined permitting process.

“We will make this easy for you,” Arnone said, referencing the permitting gridlock that has plagued film productions in California.