British Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden has announced the quarantine exemption for small numbers of essential cast and crew to help the screen industries bounce back from COVID-19 pandemic.
- July 6, 2020
AceShowbiz - Tom Cruise's new "Mission: Impossible" action blockbuster and Robert Pattinson's highly-anticipated debut as Batman are among the projects given the green light to resume filming in the U.K.
Both "Mission: Impossible VII" and "The Batman" were in the midst of production in March when the coronavirus pandemic began, forcing a global industry shutdown.
Cruise was recently revealed to have flown to England in the hopes of getting back to work soon, and on Sunday, July 5, British Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden announced he had personally spoken to the Hollywood star, and would be allowing filming to continue once more as they would be exempt from quarantine travel restrictions, introduced to curb the spread of COVID-19.
As part of the exemption, cast and crewmembers must abide by rules to remain in a "bubble" environment, staying in and around the production area for the duration of the shoot.
"The world's biggest blockbusters and high-end TV shows are made in Britain," Dowden said at a press conference.
"Our creativity, expertise and highly successful tax reliefs for our screen industries means that we are an in-demand location that in turn delivers a great return for our economy. We want the industry to bounce back and exempting small numbers of essential cast and crew from quarantine is part of our continued commitment to getting cameras rolling safely again."
Other major projects set to move into production or continue filming as a result of the ruling include "Jurassic World: Dominion", "Fantastic Beasts 3", and the live action Disney remakes of "Cinderella (2021)" and "The Little Mermaid (2020)".
