Living a bleak existence at a London orphanage, 12-year-old Peter (Levi Miller) finds himself whisked away to the fantastical world of Neverland.
Adventure awaits as he meets new friend James Hook (Garrett Hedlund) and the warrior Tiger Lily (Rooney Mara). They must band together to save Neverland from the ruthless pirate Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman). Along the way, the rebellious and mischievous boy discovers his true destiny, becoming the hero forever known as Peter Pan.
Living a bleak existence at a London orphanage, 12-year-old Peter (Levi Miller) finds himself whisked away to the fantastical world of Neverland. Adventure awaits as he meets new friend James Hook (Garrett Hedlund) and the warrior Tiger Lily (Rooney Mara).
They must band together to save Neverland from the ruthless pirate Blackbeard (Hugh Jackman). Along the way, the rebellious and mischievous boy discovers his true destiny, becoming the hero forever known as Peter Pan.
Director: Joe Wright
Production Designer: Aline Bonetto
Studio: Warner Bros.
Starring: Levi Miller, Hugh Jackman, Garrett Hedlund & Rooney Mara
Locations: London & Vietnam
Location Brief: Asian Fantasy locations – Waterfall, Jungle Tree Canopy, Paddy fields River, gigantic Cave entrance and Limestone Karst Sea vista
A Little Extra: Joe Wright’s Neverland – Built on a Global Canvas
Joe Wright’s Pan was no ordinary fantasy — it was an ambitious reimagining that combined elaborate sets with awe-inspiring real-world backdrops. While the bulk of principal photography took place on UK sound stages and location builds, the production’s reach extended far beyond.
To capture the epic scale and natural beauty of Neverland, the team looked to Vietnam — not for live-action sequences, but to film breathtaking visual effects plates. Towering limestone karsts, misty jungle canopies, mirror-like rivers, and enormous cave entrances were all shot on location in places like Trang An, Ha Long Bay, and the vast Son Doong Cave — one of the largest in the world. These stunning natural features were later woven into the final film through digital compositing, giving Neverland its otherworldly grandeur and scale.
Much of that visual richness also came from the hands of Aline Bonetto, the film’s Production Designer. Known for her long-standing collaboration with Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Amélie, A Very Long Engagement) and her Oscar-nominated work on Wonder Woman and Amélie, Bonetto brought her signature mix of whimsy and texture to Neverland. Her approach — grounded in practical builds with a dreamlike flourish — gave the film a handmade, storybook quality that worked in harmony with the larger visual effects world.
It’s a great example of how today’s filmmaking merges physical sets and performance with real-world landscapes to build something larger than life. For my part, I was proud to oversee the planning and coordination of the Vietnam leg of this global vision — helping create the environments where fantasy becomes reality.
Here are some of my original location scout photo’s for the film:
Film Trailer:
