Update: Not long ago a source mentioned that Green Lantern might be doing some scouting in Louisiana, and I completely spaced it this morning. Same source wrote in just now to say that in fact, the production will shoot in the States next year, likely in or around New Orleans. Does that mean all the work is going to happen here? Not necessarily, but it is a sign that WB at least has a contingency plan. Original article follows.

First up, don’t take anything that follows as a suggestion that Martin Campbell’s Green Lantern isn’t going to happen. It simply may not happen where it was originally scheduled to. Australian site Inside Film reports that “Green Lantern’s proposed Australian shoot is understood to be under threat after the rising Australian dollar has blown out production costs.” What does that mean? Basically, that if Warner Bros. and the Australian government can’t come to some sort of tax break deal, you’ll see Canadian or Eastern European backdrops in the film instead of Australian.

Essentially, the problem is that the value of the Australian dollar has risen quite a bit since this spring. It’s 16% higher now; great for Australians, but not so attractive for US studios that decided to shoot there to take advantage of affordable production. Hey, you think that industry (like film production) flocking to the country has helped their dollar? Probably not by 16%, but every bit helps.

Inside Film says “Warner Bros is understood to be negotiating with the NSW State Government to receive a higher level of concessions in an effort to claw back between $US15 and $US25 million in value eroded by the currency gains.” The complication is that Warner Bros. wasn’t able to lock in their financing months ago when the picture decided to shoot down under. Now they might be left hanging while the new Narnia film and Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark are able to shoot with financing packages locked in months ago when the dollar was weaker.

So where do you want to see Green Lantern based, if it can’t be the glorious vistas of Australia? If every other damn picture didn’t seem to be shooting in New Mexico these days I’d say the American Southwest is the ideal location. And probably still is; there’d be real verisimilitude for Hal Jordan’s test pilot character if the film actually shot in areas where that sort of thing took place. What a concept.

via: prodweekly