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Michigan Governor Rick Snyder has accomplished what many super-villains could not do–chase away The Avengers. One aspect of Snyder’s budget proposal is to eliminate the tax breaks provided to the movie industry to film in Michigan. The Detroit Free Press reports on the decision not to film portions of the upcoming Avengers movie in Michigan as a consequence of the change:

Gov. Rick Snyder’s budget proposal on Michigan film incentives is sending immediate aftershocks.

“The Avengers” — a big-budget Marvel superhero film featuring Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk and others that was to be partially shot here this summer — has already decided it won’t be filming in the state, several people with connections to the film told the Free Press.

The “Avengers” story echoes the buzz spreading through the local film industry that projects wanting to come here are either holding off on their plans or changing their locations to another state.

Anxiety, uncertainty and anger are building in the metro Detroit film community over Snyder’s budget plan, which essentially would eliminate the current film tax incentive and instead call for $25 million in each of the next two years for future movie projects.

Previously the tax breaks were considered to be valuable as the presence of the movie industry was helpful for local businesses:

The departure of the “The Avengers” project means a loss to more businesses than those involved with on-set duties.

“We were currently in negotiations to work with them at some point during their stay,” said Scott Stinebaugh, director of sales and marketing for the Westin Book Cadillac.

The film industry in general represented more than $1 million to the Book Cadillac in 2010, Stinebaugh said.

If those opportunities go away, “it will be a devastating blow not just to us, but to all of the metropolitan Detroit hospitality community,” he said.

To be fair to Snyder, it should also be noted that he is arguing that his proposed reductions in business taxes solve the problem which made it necessary to provide these breaks in the first place, but it does not appear that the movie industry is seeing it this way. Snyder is basing his tax policies on the argument that they will bring more business to Michigan, but he has failed here.