Director Ridley Scott is so keen to film in Australia that he has been lobbying the Australian foreign minister, Julie Bishop, while she is in New York for the UN general assembly.
Bishop confirmed to Sky News on Wednesday that she had met Scott to talk about the possibilities of him producing a film in Australia.
“I was very interested to hear from him and it’s certainly a matter I’ll take up with prime minister Malcolm Turnbull and treasurer Scott Morrison,” she said.
Bishop has previously dined with such celebrities as Robert De Niro and Hugh Jackman, and she speculated that “maybe it was through De Niro” Scott had managed to wrangle the high-powered tête-à-tête.
Bishop said it was part of the government’s agenda to promote Australia’s creative economy.
“We have some of the most talented and creative people in Australia, one of our greatest natural assets,” she said.
“And if we can promote film production in Australia I think that’s a great opportunity for more jobs in our creative economies, in the creative sections in our country.”
Bishop did not reveal which film Scott might bring to Australia, but based on past interviews with the director it is likely to be the follow-up to his 1982 classic Blade Runner, or a sequel to Prometheus (itself a prequel to his Alien franchise).
At the recent Toronto international film festival, Scott said preparation for the follow-up to 2012 blockbuster Prometheus had begun and that the shoot would take place in either Australia or Canada next February.
Last week Scott confirmed with German site FilmFutter that there could be up to three Prometheus sequels, after which the series would link back to the original Alien franchise.
Scott was last seen in Australia in 2014 when he took a tour of Sydney’s Fox studios, prompting rumours that he was scouting for film locations.
Bishop’s office has been contacted for comment.
