Superman prequel series ‘Krypton’ will be filmed in Belfast

Superman’s grandfather is going to be spending the summer in Northern Ireland, it has been revealed.

Belfast Harbour and NI Screen confirmed on Wednesday that a new Superman prequel television series, Krypton, will be shot at the £20 million Belfast Harbour Studios this summer.

Krypton will be the studio's first production. It is being developed by the Hollywood-based production company Phantom Four in association with Warner Horizon Scripted Television for the channel Syfy.

Phantom Four is veteran screenwriter David S Goyer's production company. Mr Goyer is best known for his work on the Dark Knight trilogy, Man of Steel and most recently Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

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Krypton is set two generations before the destruction of the superhero's home planet and is expected to begin pre-production in Belfast this month, with a shoot date scheduled for late summer.

It will star Cameron Cuffe in the main role as Superman's grandfather and also local star Ian McElhinney, who will be well known to Game of Thrones fans.

Exciting development

David Dobbin, chairman of Belfast Harbour, said Warner's decision to shoot in Belfast is a very exciting development.

“We regard our investment in the studios as a good business opportunity for Belfast Harbour and good for the local economy and our rapidly growing media sector.

“We look forward to working with Warner and further enhancing Northern Ireland’s reputation in the film industry,” Mr Dobbin added.

Northern Ireland Screen also believes the harbour’s £20 million investment – which includes two film studios, workshops and separate production offices – could help attract more film and television production companies.

The North has previously enjoyed spectacular success with the HBO show Game of Thrones, which was shot at Titanic Studios in Belfast and on location across Northern Ireland.

Richard Williams, chief executive of Northern Ireland Screen, said: "We are delighted to welcome Warner Horizon to Northern Ireland. Securing Krypton is a real coup for us and cements our position as a world-class filming location with a local and highly skilled crew base with vast experience.

“The construction of the new studios by Belfast Harbour has added tremendous value to our overall proposition.”

* Animation studio Boulder Media announced Tuesday that it is opening a second Dublin studio space in Sandymount. Boulder, which was acquired in 2016 by US toy giant Hasbro, will continue operating its city centre studio on Hawkins Street.