Hollywood film crews bring multi-million pound windfalls to the Highlands

Bollywood December 29, 2023

Click here to sign up for our free newsletters!

The council believes that Hollywood’s interest in filming locations in the Highlands could bring record revenues to the Highlands this year.

More than £3 million was spent directly in the area by TV and film crews in the 2022 calendar year, and Highland Council believes this record rise will continue when figures for 2023 are published in 2024.

The council revealed the information after praising the work of the Highland Film Committee – which is run by the local authority – for its success in attracting cinema to the region.

In recent years, elements of their productions have been filmed in the area, from James Bond to Transformers.

One of the biggest hit TV series of 2023, the BBC’s Traitors – and its American counterpart – was also filmed in the Highlands at Ardros Castle in Easter Ross.

Related: Loch Ness and Glen Affric are among the sights on the tourist map of the new Hollywood movie

Related: James Bond leads a guide to Highland film locations

With the long-awaited second series of The Traitors airing on BBC1 next week, Highland Council said it was seizing the opportunity to highlight the economic boost such filming brings to the area.

Chair of the council’s Economy and Infrastructure Committee, Councilor Ken Gowans, said: “The screen industry across Scotland has seen a boom in the last five years and last year’s figures show Highland is no exception to this trend, with both national and international productions.” Photography in the area.

“Despite this year’s Writers Guild of America writers strike, Highland still has several high-profile film projects in the region that will be announced in due course. Given the diverse landscape of Highland, these projects cover a wide range of genres and include small independent features Large-scale programs and realistic projects.

“I’d like to thank our in-house film team for all their hard work. With a few projects already in the pipeline for 2024, we’re thrilled that Highlands remains a popular choice with filmmakers.”

The council added that direct spending in the Highland region reached more than £3 million for the 2022 calendar year, a record for the region. Figures for 2023 will not be published until 2024 but she added that “it is expected to continue this trend.”

This expenditure includes location fees, local crew hire, lodging, catering, and other services required by productions while filming in Highland. Filming covers all parts of the Highlands including Duncansby Head in Caithness, Torridon in Wester Ross, and Elgol on Skye.

Productions include both the UK and US versions of The Traitors, Chemistry of Death for Paramount+, Miriam and Alan’s Lost in Scotland and Beyond from C4, a Bentley commercial for the Flying Spur Speed and many more.