Zachary Levi has spent years working in Hollywood, but he no longer sees California as the place where he wants to build his future.
The Shazam! and Chuck star called his home state a “failed state” during a new Fox News interview with his The Fix co-star Liam Neeson. Levi, 45, said California is “literally and figuratively on fire” while explaining why he bought land outside Austin, Texas, and began working toward his own film studio.
Levi has been developing Wyldwood Studios, a roughly $100 million production campus and community on 75 acres in Bastrop County. The project is expected to include soundstages, housing, hospitality spaces and other facilities built around his idea of giving filmmakers an alternative to the traditional Hollywood studio system.
Levi’s latest comments came as he and Neeson promoted The Fix, the action thriller that opened in theaters Sept. 11. The actor has continued working on conventional Hollywood productions even as he puts money and time into building a very different version of the industry in Texas.
Levi Says California Is a ‘Failed State’
Levi grew up in California and made clear that he still has affection for the state. His assessment of what it has become, however, was considerably less positive. “I grew up in California, I love California, it is a failed state,” he told Fox News Digital.
Levi said his decision to look elsewhere also grew out of frustrations he had developed with Hollywood itself. After working inside the entertainment industry, he began imagining a studio where artists had more ownership and fewer layers separating them from the work being produced.
He eventually bought 75 acres outside Austin in 2017. Levi said he had to weigh leaving family, friends and Southern California’s weather against pursuing something he believed he was supposed to build.
Texas won that argument. Levi now describes Austin enthusiastically, even if he acknowledged that its summers can get hot and its winters are less predictable than Southern California.
Wyldwood Is Levi’s $100 Million Plan for a Different Hollywood
The land Levi purchased eventually became the foundation for Wyldwood Studios. The project is being developed in Bastrop County along the Colorado River, east of Austin.
A 2025 Variety profile described Levi as raising $40 million toward a full campus projected to cost around $100 million. His plans included two 20,000-square-foot soundstages, amphitheaters, a boutique hotel, cabins and a farm-to-table restaurant.
The idea extends beyond providing buildings where movies can be shot. Levi has repeatedly described Wyldwood as a place where cast and crew members could live with their families instead of spending months separated from them while working on productions.
He has also talked about shorter shooting days and stretching production schedules when necessary rather than routinely relying on extremely long working hours. Variety reported that Levi envisioned “8- to 10-hour days” and said productions could extend their schedules when needed to make up the difference.
In an April interview with Faith Driven Entrepreneur, Levi spent much of the conversation describing Wyldwood and his dissatisfaction with the existing studio structure. He compared the concept to older company towns built around both employment and community, while arguing that modern production can be organized differently.
The project is no longer only an idea. Bastrop County lists Wyldwood among the studio developments underway in the area and describes the 75-acre campus as a $100 million project with production spaces, lodging and wellness facilities. Current plans call for the first two soundstages to open in 2027.
Levi Has Not Completely Walked Away From Hollywood
When Variety interviewed him about Wyldwood in 2025, he said he expected to keep a presence in Los Angeles and continue working within the existing industry while developing the Texas project.
That is already happening. Levi has continued appearing in projects produced outside Wyldwood while working on the campus, and his newest film puts him opposite one of the most recognizable action stars in Hollywood.
Levi’s career has also taken several turns since the end of Chuck. He played the adult superhero Billy Batson in 2019’s Shazam! and returned for Shazam! Fury of the Gods in 2023. The first movie became a sizable hit, while the sequel performed considerably worse at the box office.
He has also remained willing to return to the character. Levi told Variety last year that he would play Shazam again if the opportunity arose, although he said he was unaware of any plans for another film.
‘The Fix’ Gives Levi a Much Darker Role
Directed by Guy Moshe, the film follows a group of former CIA operators whose mission in Afghanistan ends badly. Levi plays Tucker, who leads the group into Tehran on another dangerous operation, while Neeson plays Larry, his longtime mentor. The movie also stars Quincy Isaiah, Wes Chatham, Titus Welliver, Annet Mahendru and Elnaaz Norouzi.
Levi told Fox News that he wanted a role that was “gritty” and “darker” than much of his previous work. Moshe separately praised Levi’s physicality and said the actor embraced the action demands of the production. The Fix opened in U.S. theaters on Sept. 11.