Movie paradise? How Malta became a magnet for big film shoots
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- Malta hosted a record 36 major film and TV productions in 2025 — matching its 2023 high — including Jurassic World Rebirth, Gladiator II, The Magic Faraway Tree, and Jason Statham's Mutiny.
- Film Commissioner Johann Grech announced plans to extend the 40% cash rebate (which expires in 2028) and build an €80m (£70m) studio complex, telling the Mediterrane festival: "Every euro that we invest in the rebate, the industry generates back four."
- A Napoleon and Gladiator II producer called Malta's rebate — which unlike rivals can be applied to foreign crew and equipment — "probably the most generous cash rebate in the world."
- Maltese screenwriter Teodor Reljić said local directors can't compete with Hollywood wages, telling the Guardian local filmmakers "can't pay a DOP because they are expecting Jurassic World fees," while the Malta Film Commission focuses on international productions and domestic film is left to a smaller arts council.
- Estonia pairs its production incentives with homegrown film funding, a contrast drawn by Estonian Film Institute head Edith Sepp, who warned countries risk "becoming a place to shoot the films, but our own stories struggle to find their funding."
- Community pushback is mounting: equipment filming in Valletta last month knocked over and damaged a 100-year-old statue in St George's Square, and residents quoted by MaltaToday asked: "What are Valletta residents supposed to do – stay confined in their homes?"
Why it matters: Malta's 40% rebate is turning the EU's smallest country into Europe's go-to stand-in for Greece, ancient Rome, the Caribbean and southern France — but the same incentives that lured Jurassic World Rebirth and Gladiator II are starving Maltese directors of crew and budget, while Valletta residents are starting to push back as streets regularly turn into sets.
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