Universal’s Sky Studios Elstree Hosts ‘Wicked,’ ‘Jurassic Park’ Sequels in Expanding Overseas Production Footprint
variety.comAlex Ritman With vibrant green carpets no doubt already having been sourced for its various global premieres, “Wicked” is expected to be one of the biggest movie events this winter.
It certainly ticks all the necessary boxes — a major musical adaptation of one of the world’s most successful stage shows and featuring an all-star cast led by the almost-EGOT Cynthia Erivo and, in her first feature-film lead role, pop princess Ariana Grande.
But however the film — the first of a two-parter — does at the box office, it has already marked a key moment for Universal Pictures, being its first film to be shot at its major new U.K.
facility, Sky Studios Elstree. First announced by Comcast’s pay TV giant Sky in 2019, approved by local authorities in 2020 and opened for the cast and crew of “Wicked” in 2022, the newly built site — just north of London (and a stone’s throw from where the original “Star Wars” shot) — is spread across 27.5 acres and 12 stages, ranging from 10,000 to 40,000 square feet.
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