HOLLYWOOD - The forthcoming movie version of TV hit Dallas could be made in Florida, to the fury of officials in Texas, where the 1980s soap was set.
John Travolta, Brad Pitt, Matthew McConaughey and Catherine Zeta-Jones are among the rumored cast for the big budget update on the tales of the Ewing family.
But the Dallas itself looks set to be snubbed when shooting begins later in the year, because the city can't compete with financial incentives on offer to take the shoot elsewhere.
Florida state film commissioner Pail Sirmonds reveals his state has offered a 15 per cent refund on all money spent there up to $2 million--an offer that looks certain to tempt producers to the Sunshine state.
Sirmonds says, "We're not out to try to steal Dallas from Texas. They came to us. Also, the actor being cast in the lead, John Travolta, lives in Florida. And the person who designed or built (Dallas ranch) Southfork built a duplicate near Jacksonville (Florida)."
Dallas movie producer Michael Costigan confesses, "Honestly, Dallas was never high on the list, because it didn't seem like a feasible, economic place to do the movie."
But Dallas Film Commission head Janis Burkland says, "It will be a horrible black eye to the state if Dallas isn't made in Dallas."
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