From Broadway to Fort Monmouth: Netflix’s Growing East Coast Strategy

In April 2025, Netflix made a historic leap into New York’s theatre scene with its Broadway debut, Stranger Things: The First Shadow. This venture reflects a substantial investment in New York’s live entertainment landscape, extending one of Netflix’s most successful franchises into the heart of Broadway and signaling the company’s growing commitment to immersive, location‑based storytelling.

This move also suggests that major entertainment companies may increasingly view Broadway as a strategic platform, using theatre to expand their Intellectual Property and explore different formats of storytelling.

The financial feasibility of such large‑scale projects is strengthened by the New York City Musical and Theatrical Production Tax Credit, which offers up to $3 million in refundable tax credits for qualifying Broadway productions. This program reduces the financial burden associated with producing in New York and helps offset rising production costs, encouraging participation from large corporate producers like Netflix. By performing Agreed‑Upon Procedures (AUP) engagements for these shows, Withum has helped over 100 theatrical productions secure their share of the New York Theatrical Production Tax Credit, including for Netflix’s Stranger Things: The First Shadow on Broadway.

In 2022, Netflix committed to opening a $1 billion production facility in Fort Monmouth, NJ, which marks a major milestone in the state’s rapidly expanding film industry. In May of 2025, Netflix broke ground on the 292‑acre project, which will feature 12 cutting‑edge soundstages and extensive production amenities. The decision to build in New Jersey was driven largely by New Jersey’s highly competitive Film and Digital Media Tax Credit program, which offers incentives of up to 40% for qualified production expenses. According to coverage of the project, Netflix was specifically attracted by New Jersey’s credit incentive structure and long‑term commitment to building a film ecosystem. This serves as a reminder that production studios and filmmaking will always follow the money.

In addition to theater tax credit programs, Withum brings deep expertise in performing AUP engagements for film and digital media programs, including the Garden State Film and Digital Media Jobs Act Film Tax Credit program. Our team understands the detailed requirements of this program and carefully review production expenditures to ensure they align with eligibility standards. This thorough verification strengthens the reliability of a project’s cost submissions on applications and supports a smoother, faster approval process for tax credits.

Withum’s longstanding presence in the New Jersey community gives us an innate understanding of the state’s culture, local landscape, and unique production environment – insights that allow us to relate closely to your project and provide world-class guidance grounded in local familiarity. We are dedicated to supporting your production from start to finish and look forward to helping you secure the incentives your project has earned.

Authors: Ryan Flash, CPA | [email protected], Charles Batikha, CPA | [email protected] and Daniel Iannetta, CPA | [email protected]