Entrepreneur and actor Mark Wahlberg said moving to Las Vegas’ Summerlin district felt intuitive after he and his wife decided they no longer wanted to raise their children in Los Angeles.

In Nevada, he and his family are able to play a bigger part in their church and community.

“People are very nice, but nobody bothers me,” Wahlberg said. “I’ve found my happy place.”

Wahlberg’s remarks came during an hour-long conversation with Nevada Independent CEO and Editor Jon Ralston at the publication’s annual politics and policy-focused conference. In addition to discussing movie trivia, his move to Las Vegas and the Raiders’ season, Wahlberg also shared his desire for a film tax credit expansion in the Silver State. 

He said he filmed scenes of a movie in Las Vegas and realized there were talented people in front of and behind the camera in the area, and film tax credit expansions offer opportunities to diversify an economy that’s heavily reliant on the tourism industry.

“Look, the studios will save money, they'll make more money, they'll have more interesting places to shoot,” he said. “They are spending more and more money making it, and why not have it spent here and putting it in the pockets in the community of the people in Las Vegas and Nevada as a whole.”

The pitch is for Sony Pictures' proposal to expand the annual $10 million in transferable tax credits Nevada law currently allows. It’s one of two proposals — the other by Warner Bros. Discovery — being made ahead of the state’s 2025 legislative session. 

Economists have largely downplayed the economic benefits of film tax credits, pointing to research that programs in other states are not providing much return on investment and even disinvestment over time. 

During the 2023 legislative session, critics of a proposed expansion of the film tax credit program noted the need to support other critical services that lawmakers have long described as underfunded.

Wahlberg pushed back against the criticism, saying that past proposals didn’t feature long-term planning and that expanding the film tax credits could provide consistent business. 

“I think there's a real opportunity for repeat business long term that is going to be beneficial to everybody,” he said.

Watch the full panel discussion here: