Norwegian landmarks like Pulpit Rock (Prekestolen), Troll’s Tongue (Trolltunga), Folgefonna and Lofoten are being scouted for an upcoming Hollywood production of Star Wars.
According to the Norwegian venerable newspaper Aftenposten, producers Tor Arne Øvrebø and Per-Henry Borch say that Norway is currently high on the list of location scouting international studios.
The country’s beautiful nature is thought to be ideal for certain productions. Will the Norwegian landscape be returning to the GFFA for the first time since The Empire Strikes Back, which was filmed in Finse? As Star Wars fans know, the Hoth scenes in The Empire Strikes Back were filmed in the small town of Finse, Norway and nearby Hardangerjøkulen Glacier in 1979.
During the past months Øvrebø and Borch have led tours about the country, scouting locations for upcoming production without mentioning specific titles, but they reveal that Marvel and Lucasd Film are among interested studios. Pulpit Rock, Norway’s most visited tourist attractions, is one of the most attractive settings.
Having a couple of blockbusters set in Norway would increase tourism, but the limited scope of Norway’s incentive schemes for foreign filmmakers, combined with Norwegian bureaucracy, could be a sticking point for foreign countries looking to film here, warn film producers Per-Henry Borch and Tor Arne Øvrebø. This means that the opportunities for international producers filming in Norway may be lost to more generous countries, albeit with less dramatic scenery.
However, The Norwegian Film Institute is clearly flirting with Lucas Film, currently featuring a picture from The Empire Strikes Back filmed in Norway on its Incentive Scheme page.
Star Wars: Episode IX, is scheduled for a December 2019 release.
In 2016 Hollywood films ‘The Snowman’ with Michael Fassbender and ‘Downsizing’ with Matt Damon were filmed at various Norwegian locations, so Norway seems to be a growing location for Hollywood blockbusters.
Feature image (on top): Lofoten
Norwegian Landmarks in the Next Star Wars Production? written by Tor Kjolberg