We love a powerful ally.
Netflix have moved production of their new show OBX out of North Carolina because of the US state’s anti-trans House Bill 2 (HB2).
The bill – which was passed back in 2016 – did not protect trans people from using the public bathroom that aligns with their gender identity if they had not undergone “surgical and legal steps.”
After public outcry, it was amended to the HB142 bill but activists highlighted that it was simply a “discriminatory replacement”.
Netflix considered filming OBX in Wilmington, North Carolina as that is where the story is set.
Show creator Jonas Pate is a native of Wilmington and said that there are specific Port City locations in North Carolina that would be ideal for filming.
However, because of North Carolina’s anti-trans laws Netflix opted instead to film the show in South Carolina.
Kevin Zamani via Flickr
It all hinged on a specific piece of the HB142 bill, which is a clause forbidding municipalities from passing an ordinance excluding them from the bill’s restrictions.
That clause expires on 1 December, 2020, but Pate has called on the state to bring forward that date as it may change Netflix’s decision.
“This tiny law is costing this town 70 good, clean, pension-paying jobs and also sending a message to those people who can bring these jobs and more that North Carolina still doesn’t get it,” Pate said to Star News Online.
“We have a tiny window where this could be pulled out of the fire.
“If I get any sense that there is any effort to move the sunset date up, I think I could convince Netflix to change course.”
OBX hasn’t been formally announced by Netflix yet, but it has reportedly been ordered for a 10-episode series.
It will follow four teenagers in a fictional Outer Banks town over a summer of change for them after a hurricane cuts all power and communication to the islands.
Latest
