Netflix officially broke ground on its $1 billion production facility at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, marking the company’s most ambitious East Coast expansion to date and a defining moment for the Garden State’s push to become a national media powerhouse.
The 292-acre complex, once a dormant U.S. Army base, will be transformed into a sprawling content production hub with 12 state-of-the-art soundstages, backlots, post-production facilities, and over 500,000 square feet of production infrastructure. At full capacity, the site is expected to create 1,500 permanent jobs, support 3,500 construction roles, and generate as much as $4 billion in economic impact, according to state officials.
But behind the ceremonial wrecking ball and high-profile attendees including Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos, Governor Phil Murphy, and a roster of state and local leaders was a clear subtext. New Jersey didn’t just get lucky. It made a compelling offer that Netflix couldn’t refuse.
The tax credit that changed the script
At the heart of this deal is the New Jersey Film and Digital Media Tax Credit Program, one of the most aggressive incentive structures in the country. It offers up to 35% back on qualified production costs and up to 40% for post-production. That second number, in particular, turned heads in Los Gatos.
“This wasn’t just sentimental,” said Sarandos, a New Jersey native. “It was smart business.” He emphasized that the tax credits, recently extended through 2039, gave Netflix the confidence to commit at scale.
State lawmakers echoed that view. Senator Declan O’Scanlon, once a skeptic of the film subsidy program, openly admitted at the groundbreaking, “I was wrong.” Monmouth County officials, meanwhile, promised to eliminate bureaucratic hurdles and fast-track approvals, an implicit contrast to California’s sluggish permitting process.
A cultural rebirth and a political victory
Governor Murphy, a vocal proponent of the project since its 2022 proposal, cast the deal as both an economic engine and a cultural revival. “New Jersey has always had a place in film history,” he said. “Now, we’re writing a new chapter.”
Local pride was palpable at the event. With some good-natured jabs at New York and California, speakers including Speaker Craig Coughlin and Senator Vin Gopal positioned New Jersey as the new heartland for media production. The sentiment was underscored by the presence of The Sopranos creator David Chase.
That pride wasn’t just symbolic. Netflix has already hosted supplier networking events, participated in regional film festivals, and partnered with veterans’ organizations, signaling a broader intention to embed itself in the community.
From military innovation to streaming supremacy
The site at Fort Monmouth has been largely vacant for over a decade. Once a hub of military innovation, it now represents the cutting edge of entertainment infrastructure. Demolition will span the next 13 months, with full construction targeting completion by 2028, pending final approvals from the Monmouth County Planning Board.
Netflix’s new East Coast studio will join a global network of production hubs in Los Angeles, Albuquerque, London, Madrid, Toronto, and Vancouver. But Fort Monmouth holds strategic value. It gives Netflix a powerful foothold to compete for talent, resources, and creative partnerships across the Eastern Seaboard while optimizing for tax efficiency in a tightening media economy.
Betting big on Jersey
With $387 million in state tax breaks, eligibility for a 40 percent post-production credit, and up to $125 million in additional benefits through the Garden State Film and Digital Media Jobs Act, this isn’t just a real estate development. It’s a calculated bet on New Jersey as the future of East Coast entertainment.
According to an April report by ProdPro, New Jersey is now the sixth-largest U.S. state in production spending, pulling in $536 million over the past year. If the Fort Monmouth studio stays on track, that number could skyrocket along with the state’s status as a serious player in the national content economy.
For Netflix, Fort Monmouth isn’t just another production site. It’s a strategic launchpad for the next phase of its U.S. content operations. For New Jersey, it’s the moment the state’s long-running pitch to Hollywood finally landed and stuck.
The Take
New Jersey didn’t land Netflix with nostalgia or charm. It won by understanding what matters most to the modern media business: predictable incentives, operational efficiency, and political will. The state built an offer grounded in economics, not sentiment, and backed it up with real legislative follow-through. By cutting red tape and maximizing ROI for studios, New Jersey presented a future-facing alternative to the inefficiencies plaguing legacy markets like California and New York.
Fort Monmouth is more than a new studio. It is proof that with the right alignment of policy, infrastructure, and ambition, the center of gravity in American film and TV production can shift. New Jersey didn’t just make room for Netflix. It made a case for becoming the East Coast’s answer to Hollywood.
