Murder on the Orient Express sets up UK shoot

Kenneth Branagh’s latest outing in the director’s chair is due to begin principal photography in the next two weeks in the UK.

The big-screen adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express is amassing a starry cast including Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Judi Dench, Penelope Cruz, Leslie Odom Jr, Michael Pena, Derek Jacobi, Daisy Ridley, Josh Gad, Tom Bateman and Lucy Boynton.

Branagh himself plays Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot and directs from a screenplay by Michael Green.

Filming is mainly studio-based with a few locations yet to be confirmed.

The UK continues to attract very high levels of inward investment with overseas producers drawn by the tax incentives, world class crew and state-of-the-art studio facilities. Murder on the Orient Express is one of several Hollywood films gearing up to shoot in the UK, others include Dumbo; Tomb Raider; M:I 6; the Han Solo anthology film; Mary Poppins; the untitled Jurassic World sequel and more.

According to BFI statistics, 47 of the 201 feature films that went into production in 2015 were inward investment projects, making up a hefty 83% of the overall UK spend.

For more on filming in the UK, head over to our production guide,