Julia Roberts and George Clooney romantic comedy Ticket To Paradise suspended in Queensland amid Covid outbreak
George Clooney and Julia Roberts have left Queensland after the Omicron outbreak forced producers to suspend filming on Ticket to Paradise in the state.
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Ticket to Paradise starring George Clooney and Julia Roberts has been forced to temporarily suspend production due to the severity of the Omicron outbreak in Queensland in the latest Covid hurdle for the local screen industry.
The big-budget Universal romantic comedy, which had filmed across Hamilton Island, the Gold Coast and Brisbane since November, has confirmed filming was put on hold as the number of Covid cases continued to rise in southeast Queensland.
Clooney and Roberts, who had a tight filming window, left Queensland late last week as producers work to reschedule the final two weeks of filming to a later date.
The set had recorded a number of positive cases in the first week of January which caused lengthy filming delays, meaning they were unable to complete the film in the time they had left.
Meanwhile season two of Young Rock is continuing to film as planned on the Gold Coast despite also suffering from the Omicron outbreak.
Rocky Johnson actor Joseph Lee Anderson was among those who tested positive early this month, but a spokeswoman for the film confirmed the NBC series would not be shut down.
The screen industry, which enjoyed a purple patch during the pandemic, is now working to cope with the challenges presented by the Omicron outbreak to ensure the pipeline of work for Queensland cast and crew.
“All industries are impacted by the global Covid situation and screen productions are facing some challenges as can be expected,” Screen Queensland chief executive Kylie Munnich told The Courier-Mail.
“Some productions have decided to take a short break and others have delayed starting production by a few weeks. However, the Queensland screen industry remains in a very strong position with an enviable slate of local and international productions scheduled for 2022 and demand to film in the state continuing to be high.”
Ms Munnich said productions worked in compliance with the industry Covid-safe plan and operated under their own studio policies and procedures to help keep cast and crew and the wider community safe.
“Screen Queensland is proactively providing assistance to production companies, to maintain the global reputation for Queensland as a screen production destination, employing thousands of talented local practitioners and injecting millions of dollars into our state economy,” she said.
After becoming a filming paradise because of the low Covid numbers, Queensland accounted for a record $553 million share of the total spend in Australia in the 2020-21 financial year according to Screen Australia’s drama report.
Preparations for juggernaut Disney series Nautilus are underway at Village Roadshow Studios while Tim Minchin’s series Upright is also set to begin in coming weeks.
Construction on the new Screen Queensland Studios in Cairns commences this year, and Screen Queensland is also on the hunt for a site for a new Gold Coast studio facility, funded by the Queensland Government, to cater for the overflow at Village Roadshow Studios.
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