Controversial Daily Wire Film Shot at Closed Limestone University Qualifies for South Carolina Tax Credits

GAFFNEY, S.C. — A politically charged action film produced by The Daily Wire was filmed on the now-closed Limestone University campus in Gaffney and qualified for South Carolina’s film incentive program after the production met the state’s in-state spending threshold.

Run Hide Fight: Infidels, which premiered on The Daily Wire’s streaming service on Sept. 16, drew widespread criticism for its depiction of Muslim characters as the central antagonists. The film stars Jonathan Majors, whose Hollywood career has been complicated by a 2023 conviction on domestic violence charges. The plot centers on a violent extremist cell targeting liberal students and conservative students who retaliate.

The production used Limestone’s 121-acre campus—a property with more than 30 buildings that closed in April amid roughly $38 million in debt. Attorneys managing the university’s receivership say rental income from the shoot helped offset some carrying costs, though specific rental figures were not disclosed. Producer Dallas Sonnier did not respond to requests for comment.

A Daily Wire press image from the film 'Run Hide Fight: Infidels' showing a college protest from the film. The Curtis Building — a centerpiece of the campus of Limestone University — can be seen in the background. The Daily Wire / Provided Photo

The South Carolina Film Commission confirmed the project’s in-state spending exceeded the program threshold for incentives. "Films that come into S.C. with a budget of over $1M in in-state spend(ing) qualify after approvals from our interoffice film panel," said Matt Storm, director of the commission, noting the production’s location in a region that seldom hosts shoots helped its application.

State Incentives and Local Impact

South Carolina’s incentive package includes sales tax exemptions, wage rebates (25% for South Carolina residents and 20% for non-residents), reimbursements for supplies purchased from in-state vendors, and the ability to waive location fees for underutilized state-owned properties. While the incentives have helped attract notable productions—boosting the state’s profile with films such as The Patriot and The Notebook—the industry supports a modest workforce: roughly 7,000 full-time workers with a broader impact supporting about 17,000 jobs.

Politics, Production, And Next Steps

The film is part of The Daily Wire’s expanding slate of narrative and documentary projects aimed at audiences who perceive a liberal bias in Hollywood. Mainstream critics were harsh: Texas Monthly wrote that the film offers "the pleasure of seeing the sort of Americans it hates get their comeuppance," while Variety called it "more of an epic act of trolling than a sincere creative endeavor."

Efforts to make South Carolina’s film credit program permanent and to expand benefits have been proposed in the statehouse, but legislation introduced in 2025 has so far made limited progress. At the federal level, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) in late September introduced the Motion Picture, Television, and Entertainment Revitalization Act, which would create a 20% federal tax credit and additional incentives for independent productions and projects filmed in federal opportunity zones.

Bottom line: The production provided short-term revenue for a receivership-run campus and qualified for state incentives by meeting in-state spending thresholds, but it also sparked criticism for its political content and portrayal of Muslim characters.