Warner Bros Studios Leavesden (WBSL), the firm behind the Harry Potter film franchise, will undergo a major expansion in a bid to boost the UK film and TV industry.
Entertainment company Warner Bros Discovery has announced that WBSL will be expanded with 10 new sound stages and an additional 400,000 sq ft of production and support facilities. feet (37,000 sq. meters).
Production capacity at the expanded Hertfordshire location will increase by more than 50%, with WBSL becoming DC Studios’ primary production hub.
The project is expected to create 4,000 “direct and indirect” jobs across the UK and increase WBSL’s contribution to the UK economy by “more than £200 million”, Warner Bros Discovery said.
Groundbreaking for the project is set to begin next year, with the expansion expected to be completed in 2027.
Global hit “Barbie” and HBO series “House of the Dragon” are among the latest projects to be filmed on WBSL’s sound stages.
The studio also developed the Harry Potter franchise, and its fan tours are a major tourist attraction.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt called Warner Bros Discovery’s investment in the site “a huge vote of confidence in the UK”.
He said: “A huge strength of our creative industry is that films and TV shows made in the UK reach cinemas and living rooms around the world, including the Barbie and the House of the Dragon series.
“Warner Bros Discovery’s ambitious plan to expand its Leavesden studio is a huge vote of confidence in the UK, creating thousands of jobs and growing our economy, and means British entertainment will continue to delight and entertain global audiences.”
Simon Robinson, Chief Operating Officer of Warner Bros Discovery Studios, said: “Warner Bros Studios Leavesden is world renowned for its exceptional sound stages and facilities and with this planned expansion adding significant capacity and capabilities, it will be home to even more incredible stories. both for film and television projects.
“We are proud to not only develop our production in Leavesden and make it a major hub for DC Studios, but also to increase our economic and social contribution to the UK’s creative sector.”