The creator of The Wire, David Simon, has revealed that he won't shoot his new Texas-based HBO miniseries in Texas as a result of the state's recent controversial abortion law.
Simon, who is behind hit HBO shows like The Wire and The Deuce, announced the news on Twitter today. He also asked followers for places that look similar to the Dallas and Fort Worth areas of Texas.
Simon said this news is "not a matter of political efficacy," but rather that he's "responsible for the employees on our projects."
If 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. What else looks like Dallas/Ft. Worth? https://t.co/q6Py6XikYh
— David Simon (@AoDespair) September 20, 2021
As you can see in Simon's tweet above, The Wire creator says he can't and won't ask female cast members and crew to forego civil liberties — their right to abortion — to film there.
Texas' new law bans abortions as soon as cardiac activity is detectable, or about six weeks. Furthermore, private citizens can sue abortion providers, and more drastically, anyone who even helps a woman get an abortion.
According to IndieWire, the Dallas Film & Creative Industries Office, formerly known as the Dallas Film Commission, wrote the following in response to Simon: "Laws of a state are not reflective of its entire population. Not bringing a production to Dallas (a big 'D') only serves to further disenfranchise those that live here. We need talent/crew/creatives to stay and vote, not get driven out by inability to make a living."
"You misunderstand completely," Simon said to the Dallas Film & Creative Industries Office, according to IndieWire. "My response is NOT rooted in any debate about political efficacy or the utility of any boycott. My singular responsibility is securing and maintaining the civil liberties of all those we employ during the course of a production…even if one of our employees requires full control of her own body and choices — and if a law denies this or further criminalizes our attempt to help her exercise that control, we should have filmed elsewhere."
Simon's comments join other public responses from people and companies alike against Texas' anti-abortion law. Former Tripwire Interactive president, John Gibson, tweeted in favor of the law and two developers associated with Tripwire, Shipwright Studios, and Torn Banner Studios, spoke out against Gibson. Gibson stepped down from Tripwire shortly after.
(Header photo by Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images for WarnerMedia)
Wesley LeBlanc is a freelance news writer and guide maker for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @LeBlancWes.