by FilmInk Staff
Screen Queensland has today announced that Legendary Pictures has returned to the Gold Coast with filming underway on the live-action adaptation of Gundam.
Following Godzilla x Kong: Supernova and season two of Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Gundam continues Legendary’s slate of high-profile productions made in Queensland.
The new film stars Sydney Sweeney (The Housemaid, Euphoria) and Noah Centineo (Street Fighter, Warfare). The expansive cast also includes Jackson White (Tell Me Lies), Shioli Kutsuna (Deadpool & Wolverine), Nonso Anozie (Sweet Tooth), Michael Mando (Better Call Saul), Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton (Under the Bridge), Oleksandr Rudynskyi (The Agency), Ida Brooke (Dune: Part Three), Gemma Chua-Tran (Heartbreak High), and Jason Isaacs (The White Lotus, Harry Potter, The Death of Stalin).
For over 47 years, Gundam has stood as the defining mech franchise: the original giant robot phenomenon that inspired a global multimedia movement. Now, it’s coming to life as an original live-action adventure set in an era of war between Earth and its former space colonies.
The film follows Sydney Sweeney and Noah Centineo as rival maverick mech pilots who must come together in a race across the stars for humanity’s survival. With awe-inspiring battles, intimate human emotion and epic cinematic scale, this is Gundam like it’s never been seen before.
Minister for the Arts, John-Paul Langbroek said the Crisafulli Government’s investment in Screen Queensland’s Production Attraction Strategy continues to reap rewards for the state.
“We know that our production incentive ensures that Queensland remains globally competitive, with a strong pipeline of major projects delivering ongoing employment and expenditure for local communities.
“During filming at Village Roadshow Studios, Gundam will inject an estimated $110 million directly into Queensland’s economy by employing more than 350 local cast and crew and engaging a supply chain of small businesses across a range of connected industries.
“Over the last 10 years, Legendary has consistently turned to Queensland for their ambitious projects, with titles including Pacific Rim Uprising, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters and four ‘Monsterverse’ features collectively contributing more than $328 million to the local economy, in addition to Gundam.”
Jacqui Feeney, Screen Queensland CEO said the screen agency recognises the importance of strong partnerships with industry heavyweights like Legendary Pictures.
“Legendary’s continued trust in Queensland to create exceptional world-building environments is a testament to our experienced crews, first-class studios, versatile locations and competitive incentives supported by all levels of government.
“Projects of scale across the ‘Monsterverse’ and now Gundam also provide invaluable career pathways through our Attachment program to expand Queensland’s crew base, with emerging screen practitioners having the chance to hone their skills on set, guided by our highly experienced local industry veterans.”
Herb Gains, EVP Physical Production at Legendary, said, “Queensland has become an important production centre for Legendary for the past 10 years. The crews, facilities, as well as the government support have proven to be great partners and problem solvers for our Monsterverse films. The friendships that have developed with the community have made Queensland a second home and we look forward to expanding the relationship with Gundam.”
Written and directed by Jim Mickle (Sweet Tooth, Cold in July), Gundam is produced by Legendary Pictures and Netflix in partnership with Bandai Namco Filmworks.
The film is supported by the Australian Government through the Location Offset, the Queensland Government through Screen Queensland’s Production Attraction Strategy, and Local Government through the City of Gold Coast’s Screen Attraction Program.
Image: Gemma Chua-Tran by Johnny Vision, Ida Brooke by Kirk Newmann, Jackson White by Dennis Leupold, Jason Isaacs by David Reiss, Javon Walton by Anthony Giovonni, Michael Mando by Neilson Barnard, Noah Centineo by Matthew Sprout, Nonso Anozie by Cristian Solimeno, Oleksandr Rudynskyi by Max Nemkin, Shioli Kutsuna by Kenta Aminaka, Sydney Sweeney by Elias Tahan
