David Simon won’t force his cast and crew to step foot in Texas after the passage of a new law that “requires them to forgo civil liberties.”
The “Wire” creator has pulled an upcoming HBO series out of the state due to the new abortion law that makes procedures illegal after six weeks of pregnancy, before most women know they’re pregnant.
“(As) 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,” Simon tweeted Monday. “What else looks like Dallas/Ft. Worth?”
It’s unclear what project Simon was referring to, but nothing has been publicly announced.
“This is not a political decision for us,” he tweeted. “We can’t ethically ask any female cast/crew to relocate to any state that requires them to forgo civil liberties. The end.”
The Dallas Film & Creative Industries Office accused the showrunner of punishing an entire state of people, saying his decision “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,” the organization said.
But Simon reiterated that his decision wasn’t about politics, but rather the safety of his crew.
“My singular responsibility is to securing and maintaining the civil liberties of all those we employ during the course of a production,” he replied.
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