Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Karl Urban are going full pirate mode in the new swashbuckling action movie, The Bluff, which began streaming on Prime Video, free to Prime subscribers, today.
Directed by Frank E. Flowers, who also co-wrote the script with Joe Ballarini, The Bluff stars Chopra Jonas as Ercell, a former pirate who now lives a quiet life with her husband and her disabled son on the Cayman Islands, at the end of the 19th century. But when her husband doesn’t return fro a sea voyage, Ercell suspects her past might be coming back to haunt.
Sure enough, it’s not long before a malicious pirate captain (Karl Urban) and his crew are invading Ercell’s home. Now she must dust off her old fighting skills in order to protect her family.
Also starring Safia Oakley-Green and Temuera Morrison, The Bluff is a good ol’fashioned pirate movie, and like any good pirate movie, it takes place in a tropical setting. Read on to learn more about The Bluff movie filming locations.
The Bluff movie was filmed in Australia, and not on the Cayman Islands, despite the setting of the film.
Specifically, The Bluff filmed on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, a coastal city on the central east coast of the country, facing the Pacific Ocean. The Bluff filmed both on location and on sets in Gold Coast, at the Village Roadshow Studios.
In a statement for a press release from Screen Queensland, producer Angela Russo-Otstot of AGBO said, “The breathtaking landscapes and world-class facilities of Queensland provide an unparalleled backdrop for storytelling. We are thrilled to bring The Bluff here, collaborating with the immensely talented local crews and creatives who make this region a true cinematic hub.”
Though The Bluff did not film in the Cayman Islands, director Frank E. Flowers had a special connection to the setting of his film, being born and raised Caymanian.
“Being from the Cayman Islands, pirate lore was part of our heritage,” Flowers said in a director’s statement. “I recall fond memories of the annual ‘Pirate’s Week’ festival, where cosplayers staged full scale reenactments of pirate invasions against the local settlers who defended our shores.”
So even though The Bluff wasn’t filmed where it took place, Flowers no doubt had a keen eye for which Australian locations would look most realistic.
“We planned the shoot to be as tactile as possible with real sets in remote locations, designed to transport the cast and crew to 1840s Cayman Brac; a world never portrayed on screen,” Flowers said in his director’s statement. “This immersive approach allowed us to shoot 360 degree so action could flow organically and unrestrained.”
