California Holds 42% of Ad Shoots Amid Production Stabilization — SkimNews
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- Commercial production fell 25% between 2019 and 2025 but declined only 2% in the first six months of 2026, according to XR Extreme Reach's "Where Ads Are Made" study
- California holds 42% of US commercial shoots, the largest share of any state, buoyed by its enduring draw for celebrity talent
- New York lost 10 percentage points of market share since 2019, falling to just 14%, as neighboring New Jersey's aggressive tax incentives pulled voiceover work — nearly quintupling in the Garden State since 2019
- Texas climbed to No. 3 with 6.5% of production, including a 16% volume surge in the past year alone; Florida, Illinois, and Georgia each hold between 3% and 6%
- Celebrity payments for ads are projected to reach $1.3 billion in 2026, with total commercial talent payments (celebrities, influencers, scale actors) hitting $2.06 billion — up nearly 70% from 2020
- AI has not reduced production volume despite widespread predictions it would reshape advertising, according to XR CMO Graham McKenna: "It's not showing up in our data yet."
- Global ad spending rose nearly 9% to $1.14 trillion in 2025, per WPP Media, driven in part by celebrity endorsements now seen across multiple brands
Why it matters: For advertisers, California's celebrity access keeps it the default ad-shoot location even as the state hemorrhoids film and TV production, while New York's 10-point market share collapse shows how fast a neighboring state's tax incentives can siphon work — New Jersey's voiceover volume nearly quintupled since 2019 without cracking the top eight.
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