Netflix to film western The Harder They Fall in New Mexico

Streaming giant Netflix is set to film a western called The Harder They Fall, starring Idris Elba and Jonathan Majors, in New Mexico in Spring 2020.

The film follows outlaw Nat Love (Majors), who discovers that the man (Elba) who killed his parents two decades ago is being released from prison and decides to reunite with his gang to track his enemy down and seek revenge.

British musician Jeymes Samuel, known by his stage name the Bullitts, is directing the film, and producing it alongside Jay-Z, James Lassiter and Lawrence Bender, having previously worked with Jay-Z on The Great Gatsby soundtrack.

Elba recently co-starred with Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham in Fast & Furious spinoff Hobbs & Shaw, which grossed more than $750m worldwide, and can currently be seen in Tom Hoopers’ Cats, which has been re-cut for cinemas.

Netflix is growing its presence in New Mexico following its acquisition of Albuquerque Studios at the end of last year. “The Netflix deal has changed the paradigm in many ways,” insisted Todd Christensen, director of the New Mexico Film Office and a veteran line producer, to KFTV. “They’re fully committed to the state and will likely grow their presence here, creating more stages and backlots.”

Neil Blomkamp’s new sci-fi film Inferno is also set to shoot in New Mexico from March 2020.