Action thriller Bear Country, starring Oscar-winner Russell Crowe, is to begin filming in Australia next month, with locations in Queensland set to double as Los Angeles.
The upcoming feature will reunite Crowe with Unhinged filmmaker Derrick Borte when shooting begins in February. It will also see the actor return Queensland to after filming William Eubank’s Land Of Bad in Australia’s “sunshine state” in late 2022.
Bear Country is adapted from Thomas Perry’s 2010 novel Strip and sees Crowe play formidable club owner, Manco Kapak. When Kapak is robbed by a masked gunman, his aspirations of selling his club and retiring with his girlfriend appear more distant than ever.
Director Borte has adapted the novel with Daniel Forte, having previously written together on 2018 crime thriller American Dreamer.
State-owned agency Screen Queensland said the production would employ around 95 people and generate an estimated $7.4m (A$11.9m) for the economy.
Producers are Mark Fasano (Marlowe) of Nickel City Pictures; Jeffrey Greenstein (The Hitman’s Bodyguard) of A Higher Standard; Deborah Glover (Sleeping Dogs) of G2 Dispatch; and Mark Bower and Bruno Mustic of Life & Soul Pictures.
The production is supported by the City of Gold Coast and by the Australian government through the location offset programme. It will also provide training opportunities for crew thought Screen Queensland’s attachment programme, which offers paid, on-set positions alongside more experienced crew.
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