The race to the White House is in full swing, but it's not happening where you think it is. It's playing out in Hollywood -- and in Shreveport -- as dueling inside-the-beltway action films, both described as "'Die Hard' in the White House," are ramping up production.
Actor Gerard Butler, shown at December's Golden Globes annoucement, is headed to Shreveport to shoot 'White House Taken' (aka 'Olympus Has Fallen'), one of two upcoming action films set at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Columbia Pictures' "White House Down" is shaping up to be the bigger of the two. Roland Emmerich ("The Day After Tomorrow," "2012") is lined up to direct, and Channing Tatum and Maggie Gyllenhaal are penciled in to star as Secret Service agents who must defend the president when a paramilitary force overtakes 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Rumored to be considering the role of the president in "White House Down":Jamie Foxx, who is in New Orleans shooting Quentin Tarantino's "Django Uuchained ."
Emmerich's film is set for release on Nov. 1, 2013.
Meanwhile, and closer to home, Nu Image/Millennium will start 50 days of production on "White House Taken" -- which is also known as "Olympus Has Fallen" -- in early July in the Shreveport and Bossier City areas, where the production house runs its own studio facility. (Resumes for prospective crew can be sent to resumes to (whitehousetaken.remuses@gmail.com) .
Antoine Fuqua will reportedly direct that one, with Gerald Bulter starring as a Secret Service agent who is the government's last hope when terrorists invade the White House. No release date has been announced.
The film will mark Butler's second recent trip to Shreveport; the actor shot the forthcoming rom-com "Playing the Field" there in spring 2011.
Cameras have yet to roll on either film, but a poster for "White House Taken" cropped up along the Croisette at last month's Cannes Film Festival, as Millennium is apparently wasting no time in trying to sell the project to potential distribution houses.
The upcoming Milenninum Films' production "White House" is already pumping hundreds of thousands of dollars into the local economy , area businessmen and film officials say .
The action thriller starring Gerald Butler is set to film at Multiple Shreveport and Bossier City locations this summer , one of which will feature a partial facade of the White House .
This is a huge economic boost for Shreveport and Bossier City . 'White Taken' will be directed by Antoine Fuqua and dipicts a former secret service agent (Butler) as he works to prevent a terrorist attack on the White House .
Wow!! A lot of action in Shreveport.What a thriving production community it is becoming.I foresee great things happening there in the future.
ReplyDeleteYou might even be lucky enough to have DC there soon.....HA! PIC
Haha ... DC may be on his way ..
ReplyDeleteDC will have to move a lot faster to keep up with his cousin .
They are hiring locals for the work and that is good for everyone .