We’ve been quietly looking forward to the alien invasion thriller “The Darkest Hour” for a little while now. Following a group of American students in Moscow who get caught up in an alien invasion, it’s got a very strong cast, featuring Emile Hirsch, Olivia Thirlby, Max Minghella, Rachael Taylor and “Snabba Cash” star Joel Kinnaman, and a rather lean, enjoyable script, at least based on the draft that we read.
But the film, produced by Timur Bekmambetov (natch), and directed by art-director-turned-helmer Chris Gorak (“Right At Your Door”), has hit a snag — Summit have shut down production for two weeks, due to the still-raging forest fires on the outskirts of Moscow. The wildfire, which has been burning for weeks now, has sent mortality rates in the city up by 30%, and has led to near-unbearable living conditions.
Due to the heavy smoke, filming exterior scenes has become impossible, and Summit shut down production on the film on Thursday. Summit told The Hollywood Reporter that, “On any production the health and safety of the actors and crew is of primary concern. The potential health issues and spread of fire has forced the production to be put on hold for two weeks in order to allow things to stabilize in the area.”
Although force majeure clauses have been invoked, the crew and cast were assured that the film will be completed, and Summit currently believe that that should happen on schedule. For now, the film’s August 5, 2011 release date is still holding barring any further production delays.
