Dallas, Florida?

Larry Hagman as J.R. Ewing on "Dallas," the popular CBS nighttime soap that put the Texas city on the map

"Shoot J.R. in Dallas" is what Dallas city officials are chanting in a bid to get the feature film version of the hit TV series to shoot in the city for which it's named. These officials argue that the film could generate $30 million for Dallas. But alas, there are no film incentives in Texas. So, while "Dallas" co-producer Michael Costigan said he'd prefer to shoot the whole film in Dallas, "It's now going to come down to really making the numbers work with our studio."

Louisiana, Florida, and Canada--places that do have film incentives--are trying to lure "Dallas" to their shores. Dallas Mayor Laura Miller said, "The thought of Dallas being made in Toronto is not a good idea." Maybe shooting "Dallas" in Canada will prompt Texas legislators to reconsider passing film incentives. That's exactly what happened in Illinois when "Chicago" shot in Canada, and in New York when "New York Minute" and "Rudy: The Rudy Giuliani Story" also shot in Canada. Now Illinois and New York boast healthy, revived local film industries.

>> 'Shoot J.R. in Dallas," city tells filmmakers [CBC, 3/14/06]
>> As Dallas stand-in, T.O. wears black hat [Globe & Mail, 3/14/06]
>> J.Lo Does "Dallas" (Maybe) [E!Online, 3/15/06]

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