How Oprah, Walmart Scored Tax Breaks on Films That Others Made

Heinz makes ketchup, not documentaries about gangs. Walmart’s ties to the television series “Empire” would seem to end at selling full-season DVDs.

Yet they and others among the biggest U.S. corporations and high-net-worth individuals have emerged as some of the primary beneficiaries of state tax breaks intended to attract the production of movies, TV series, and commercials.

Critics say it’s yet another way in which these incentives have far surpassed their intended purpose, with little oversight or accountability. In 12 states, entertainment companies that can’t use the credits—which is, most of them—are allowed to sell them in private transactions to ...