Budapest doubles for 17th century England in The Reckoning

Writer/director Neil Marshall is deep into filming his latest horror thriller, The Reckoning, in Budapest.

The production base is at MaFilm’s studio complex in Fot with some location work using parts of the city to double for 17th century England.

The site at Fot, near the capital, is the former national studio of Hungary, with most sound stages – although now refurbished - dating from the 1960s and 70s. On a smaller scale than Hungary’s better-known studio offerings, Korda and Origo, it is also a rental house and has a water tank facility.

With around ten days’ shooting left on The Reckoning, Deadline confirmed recently that lead actor Charlotte Kirk has been joined by a cast including Joe Anderson, Steven Waddington and Sean Pertwee.

Set against the backdrop of the Great Plague in England and the ensuing witch hunts, Kirk plays Grace, a woman struggling with the death of her husband, who is then falsely accused of being a witch.

Budapest is a thriving international production hub, with a newly-increased rebate of 30% on offer to eligible productions and a number of international co-production treaties.

Recent high-profile projects to set up home there include Netflix’s new adaptation of Shadow and Bone and Denis Villeneuve’s feature version of Dune.

Neil Marshall photo: Gabriel Olsen/Getty Images.