SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – Today, film and television producer Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson was seen in Shreveport touring Millenium Studios.
It’s been a little over a year since the City of Shreveport held a well-attended press conference where then-mayor Adrian Perkins and the city’s former economic development director, Drew Mouton, glowingly spoke of the city’s purchase of Millennium Studios from Millennium Media for $3.8 million.
In speeches delivered that day by Perkins and Mouton, the duo said the 70,000 sq. ft. facility on 6.7 acres in Ledbetter Heights on the edge of downtown Shreveport would be used for workforce development and the city’s efforts to attract the movie industry to town once again.
“The City of Shreveport is ready for a resurgence in our film industry with the purchase of Millennium Studios,” Perkins said. “It will serve as the centerpiece of our film, arts, and workforce development initiatives. And has already captured 200 jobs.”
“There is so much content being produced that all over the world, the studio facilities, the crews, these things are tied up,” Mouton said. “So, we are in a unique position to be able to be on par with most of the other industries.”
Fast forward 12 months, and the city, under a new mayor and administration, could already be looking to get out from under the deal entirely or lease a portion of the facility.
Rapper, actor, television producer, and businessman Curtis ’50 Cent’ Jackson was spotted by NBC 6 News cameras today entering Millennium Studios on Thursday just after 12:30 p.m.
Millennium Studios was one of three locations Jackson was to tour today in Shreveport, according to a source with knowledge of the planned itinerary for the media mogul and several city officials. The other stops are Stageworks of Louisiana on Clyde Fant Memorial Parkway and Independence Stadium.
Last week, Variety and The Hollywood Reporter reported that Jackson and Fox Entertainment, a production company owned by Fox Corporation, had agreed upon a non-exclusive broadcast direct deal.
According to Variety and The Hollywood Reporter, Jackson and his production company, G-Unit Film & Television, will develop scripted series for the network.
The reports claim since the Fox agreement is non-exclusive, Jackson can sell the company’s producing services anywhere he likes, and that’s where Millennium Studios and Stageworks of Louisiana come into the equation. Both facilities are motion picture production-ready. Millennium Studios has two sound stages, production offices, a construction mill, an SFX mill, and a VFX studio.
Millennium Studios shut down in 2016 after film industry tax incentives in the state were cut off and movie productions dried up. Before the purchase, Millennium was under a contractual lease agreement with the city through December 2057.
Whether Jackson takes an interest in the facilities remains to be seen.