The great California exodus is expected to continue into 2024 as a growing list of Hollywood celebrities have joined hundreds of thousands residents who have fled the Golden State.
“Government can ruin an area. And that’s what’s gong on in California,” Mr. Cain told Fox News. “It’s the most ridiculous large government, incredible taxation, horrible regulations for business. Very anti-business. The personal income tax is 13—the highest levels—13, 13.2, whatever it happens to be.”
“You’re getting hit with the highest gas tax in the nation. Sales tax, food tax, energy tax, natural gas tax. It’s as though they’re trying to tax people out of there,” he added.
Between 2020 and 2022, California had lost about half a million people. In 2023, the state saw its third straight year of population decline. The number of people living in California dropped below 39 million this last year, its lowest level since 2015, according to recently published U.S. Census estimates.
Hollywood Actors Hit the Road
In terms of Hollywood stars who have left California, while the reasons may be personal, professional, or political, those leaving all seem to agree the state no longer holds the magical appeal it once did.
Mr. Davi, the “My Son Hunter” director, recently told his followers on X that he “quietly moved to Florida two years ago.”
“Dawson’s Creek” star James Van Der Beek, who recently made headlines after criticizing the Democratic National Committee for backing President Joe Biden without allowing his challengers Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Marianne Williamson to debate him on television, left California and moved his family to Texas nearly three years ago.
Actor Sean Patrick Flanery of “The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles” also relocated his family to Texas after living for years in California. In an interview with Breitbart News, the actor credited “traditional family values”—including hard work and meritocratic achievement—for the success he has experienced in his professional and personal life. For he and his family, he said the move has brought numerous benefits, including being closer to his extended family.
Actor Sylvester Stone and his family also left for Florida after years of living in Los Angeles.
Musicians Sing Their California Swan Song
British rocker Rod Stewart, 78, is leaving Los Angeles due to what he described as its “toxic culture.” Planning to spend more time at his U.K. residence, his LA home is on the market for $80 million.Meanwhile, singer Sheryl Crow left Los Angeles for Nashville two decades ago, a move she described as her saving grace.
“I know how hard it is for especially young people—and I don’t know if anybody was pained by struggles like I did when I was young—but these are some tricky waters to navigate now,” she said earlier this year. “I’ll just tell you that, for me, getting out in nature really saved my life.”
Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx moved his family to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in 2020.
“I wake up and I’m like, ‘I can’t think of a place I’d rather be,'” he told People magazine.
The rocker noted the area’s outdoor activities like skiing and fishing that make it a wonderful place to live, while his former home of Los Angeles is fine for a visit every once in awhile.
