Action Comedy Will Film At Several Bay State Locations.
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WCVB-TV Channel 5
September 3, 2009
BOSTON — Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz and other Hollywood names are heading to Massachusetts for two and a half weeks of filming for an upcoming untitled blockbuster.
Filming begins Sept. 15 at Worcester Regional Airport, but crews are already preparing two locations, the airport and a field in Bridgewater, for their roles in the movie.
The Worcester Telegram & Gazette reported the filmmakers chose Worcester Airport because it is sparsely used, making it easier for crews to set up the scenes and work with security. Since Sept. 11, 2001, filming movies in airports has become difficult because of tight federal regulations, set workers said. Worcester Airport was deemed the perfect spot because construction will be a breeze, and extras can be brought in to make it look like a bustling airport, said Nick Paleologos, executive director of the Massachusetts Film Office.
The action comedy, with the working title “Untitled Wichita Project,” is about a secret agent, Cruise, who periodically runs into the same young single woman, Diaz, said 20th Century Fox.
Once shooting wraps in Worcester, the film shifts locations to Bridgewater. There, on a 263-acre corn field owned by Cumberland Farms, the crews will film scenes of a plane crash and its aftermath, said Hyunsoon Moon, assistant location manager for 20th Century Fox.
The Brockton Enterprise said the film company is already flattening out the field so that the plane can be brought in and set up for filming. The plane’s fuselage is fairly large, nearly 16 feet wide, and will bring safety and logistics concerns, said Moon. 20th Century Fox met with Bridgewater selectmen and public safety officials Tuesday and Thursday to work out a plan, said The Enterprise.
The priority was to watch out for the safety of crew workers and neighbors, but also to handle traffic and crowd control, said Bridgewater Fire Chief George Rogers, Jr. Shooting in Bridgewater will take place on Sept. 24 & 25 from 3 p.m. to 6 a.m. Neighbors were advised by the film company that pyrotechnics will be used to simulate a plane crash. Moon said the field is far enough away from houses that it shouldn’t disturb neighbors much.
Flyers will be distributed to area houses listing schedules and contact information should any problems occur, Moon said. Rogers said the production company is in the process of getting all the proper permits, and he has checked with other communities for references from previous projects.
Twentieth Century Fox estimated that shooting in Bridgewater would be done by Oct. 9. The company also said they would reimburse the town for all public safety personnel costs as well as other costs that were a direct result of filming. The town itself won’t get any direct compensation from the production company, but the town is expected to get a bump for local businesses as a result of the influx of workers, actors and spectators, said selectmen.
Construction necessary for the film in both towns will provide 180 to 230 jobs, many of them being filled by workers inside New England, said crew workers.
The movie will shoot in other Massachusetts towns, including Chelsea and Woburn, in addition to Worcester and Bridgewater. Boston, one of the film’s prominent settings, will also be used as a filming location.