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A little bit of Hollywood came to Warkworth this month, when Netflix moved into the old cement works to film for the second series of its fantasy drama, Sweet Tooth.
The cast and crew in town included actor Robert Downey Jr, who is an executive producer on the show, though he remained elusive throughout, although there were several rumoured sightings.
Staff and security were steadfastly tight-lipped throughout their stay from Monday, March 14 to Saturday, March 19, citing confidentiality agreements when asked about filming activities and who was on set.
Even after the event, it was still hard to pin anyone down. Supervising location manager Karl Smith said he wasn’t sure he was able to comment, though when asked if he could confirm Robert Downey Jr was in town for the shoot, he laughed and asked, “Why would he be?”
When told it was because he was an executive producer, he replied, “Well, New Zealand’s a beautiful place for a holiday …”
Most of the filming took place towards the river outside the ruins and the set took several weeks to build. Crew cars and make-up trucks were based in a paddock at the top of McKinney Road, with regular shuttle vans running back and forwards to the cement works, and there was at least one night shoot.
Sweet Tooth is based on a fantasy comic series about a boy who is half-deer, half-human negotiating a post-apocalyptic world. The first series, also filmed in New Zealand, attracted widespread acclaim when it was screened last year.
