Gov. Bev Perdue said today that the state stands to win big with the March 23 opening of “The Hunger Games” as movie-driven tourism generates a dividend on top of the economic boost from the production, which was shot entirely in North Carolina. The Lionsgate release, based on the first novel in a bestselling trilogy by Suzanne Collins, is expected to be one of the year’s highest-grossing films.
“The success of ‘The Hunger Games’ has cemented North Carolina’s status as a premier venue for making blockbuster films,” Gov. Perdue said. “North Carolina also reaps part of the film’s financial success, as the filmmakers employed nearly 5,000 people and spent about $60 million in our state. Now fans will be excited to visit the locations they see on the screen and go to places the stars visited. The money those fans spend here go to North Carolina businesses and benefit the state’s taxpayers.”
The Department of Commerce’s Division of Tourism, Film and Sports Development has worked to leverage the economic opportunities of “Hunger Games” tourism. Newly developed travel tools, accessed at VisitNC.com, will guide visitors to film sites, star hangouts, and places that connect with the characters and other elements of the novel.
The tourism boost from “The Hunger Games” will underscore the value of the state’s 25 percent film incentive. Along with great locations and a professional crew base, the incentive was a key reason the filmmakers chose North Carolina.
“‘The Hunger Games’ helped North Carolina’s film industry generate a record $220 million in spending for 2011, the incentive’s first year,” Perdue said. “We feel confident that it will help tourism spending increase for 2012 and beyond.”
In 2010, travelers spent more than $17 billion in North Carolina. That spending supported 40,000 businesses and 183,900 jobs and generated $1.5 billion in state and local taxes. It also reduced the average family tax bill by about $400.
“This is the highest-profile movie ever made in our state,” Perdue said. “As the movie’s characters might say, the odds are in our favor to see North Carolina re-emerge as one of America’s top filming destinations, one that fans will enjoy seeing on the screen and in real life.”