Filming in Malta for ‘Jurassic World: Dominion’ to be Scaled Back After Surge in COVID-19 Infections
Deadline have reported that the filming in Malta for the upcoming Jurassic World: Dominion, set to begin at the end of this month, will be scaled back due to the island having received an increase in Covid-19 cases.
They report that Sam Neill, Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt will no longer be traveling to the country to film.
There were reports last week from sources in Malta claiming that four crew members set to work on Dominion when the production arrived have tested positive for the virus and are now self-isolating. A Universal Pictures spokesperson also confirmed the report in the New York Times article from last week that stated that four crew members in the UK have tested positive for the virus since early July. Those four were isolated and none became seriously ill.
The country has received a spike this month in cases, and arrivals from the UK will be required to quarantine for 14 days on arrival. Those 14 days can severely disrupt the filming schedule and while Universal have a cohesive plan for filming during this pandemic, they would naturally want to limit further delays to the production with mandatory quarantines and possible exposure to the virus.
Universal Pictures provided Deadline with this statement:
“Jurassic World: Dominion will have a significant presence in Malta with a second unit crew shooting there from the end of August through to September. Working with an abundance of caution as we have done throughout this production, first unit will no longer shoot in Malta to keep our presence on the ground to a minimum. We’d like to thank the Maltese Government and Film Commission for all their support and we look forward to a successful shoot in this beautiful country.”
The second unit shoot, while still large with roughly 200 crew members, is now at a 50% reduction from what had been planned. The crew will be made up of local professionals and some crew arriving from the UK.
In June, when filming was announced to be resuming, Universal Pictures reportedly had spent $5 million on safety precautions. That figure has reportedly jumped to $9 million, with the New York Times article revealing the studio rented a whole hotel for some of the cast and crew.
While this news may come as a disappointment to some, cast and crew safety is far more important than the film itself, and it seems the studio will continue to take necessary precautions as they arise. The Maltese Government have every right to halt filming if they believe it to be a safety risk.
And if the cast and crew are looking for masks to wear on set, we have a few available.
