Could this be the biggest Hollywood movie shot in Macau, the Las Vegas of the East? What to know about The Ballad of a Small Player, starring Colin Farrell, Tilda Swinton and Fala Chen, filming this summer

Jun 14 , 2024

Fala Chen, Tilda Swinton and Colin Farrell will star in The Ballad of a Small Player, which begins shooting in Macau this summer. Photos: AP Photo, Xinhua, HBO

A major Hollywood production will be based in Macau over the summer – and is likely to join the ranks of a 1974 James Bond film and Now You See Me 2 (2016) as one of the biggest international films shot in the city dubbed the Las Vegas of the East.

On May 30, The Macao News reported that Oscar-nominated director Edward Berger will be filming in the former Portuguese enclave from June until August. The movie is based on a 2014 novel of the same name, with big-name stars signed on to the project including Colin Farrell, Tilda Swinton and Fala Chen.

It’s major kudos for this tiny city as it aims to raise its profile on the global stage. The city’s Cotai Strip includes the US-based casino resort brands MGM, Sands and Wynn; in pre-pandemic 2019, its gaming revenue was three times that of Las Vegas.

So what do we know about this big-budget Hollywood production spending the entire summer in Macau? Read on to find out more.

What is the plot of The Ballad of a Small Player?

Author Lawrence Osborne wrote The Ballad of Small Player, set in Macau, and recently, Java Road, about Hong Kong. Photo: Nana Chen

Lawrence Osborne, a British author and journalist based in Bangkok, published his novel by the same name in 2014. “In Osborne’s feverish novel, the playing is done on the gambling tables of Macau by a tortured embezzler on the run,” wrote The New York Times, which included Ballad on its 100 Notable Books of 2014 list.

The protagonist is an English con man by the name of Doyle who is passing himself off as a lord – “a corrupt English lawyer who has escaped prosecution by fleeing to the East”, according to the novel’s synopsis. While in Macau, Doyle meets Dao-ming, described as “an enigmatic Chinese woman who appears to be a denizen of the casinos just like himself, and seems to offer him salvation in the form of both money and love”.

The novel has also been described as “part psychological thriller, part ghost story” and “resonant of classics by Dostoevsky and Graham Greene”.

How is Ballad different to previous films shot in Macau?

Fala Chen (right) was also in Marvel’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021). Photo: Marvel Studios

Considering Macau’s visual attractions and 16th century Portuguese architecture, it’s no wonder that international filmmakers have long been attracted to using the city as a backdrop. In the James Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun (1974), a Hollywood cast and crew – among them Roger Moore – descended upon the city for the first time, per The Macao News.

That said, past directors have been prone to presenting the territory’s locations as though they were somewhere else. In Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), audiences were led to believe the enclave’s Hotel S was in Shanghai. And in even the most Hong Kong of movies, such as In the Mood for Love (2000), director Wong Kar-wai gravitated towards Macau’s SanVa Hotel for its 1950s atmos.

In this decade, the MCU outing Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) – which also stars Chen – was partly set in Macau. However, due to Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, all the scenes in the SAR had to be created through CGI.

Will there be extras?

Lumière Film Production casting call for unnamed international film shoot

With a casting call flier for an unnamed “international film shoot” doing the rounds on social media recently, Macau was abuzz with speculation. When confirmation came that The Ballad of a Small Player would be shooting in the city this summer, it became clear that this was indeed the movie in question. The flier welcomes all ages and genders, and mentions that casino and hotel professionals are particularly sought after.

Roles include dealers, croupiers, security personnel, waiters, bellhops and concierges. “We are also looking for various background artists like gamblers, hotel guests, pedestrians, etc,” the flier continues. Interested talents can apply by sending their details and photos to Lumière Film Production in Macau.

Fame and celebrity

Based on Lawrence Osborne’s 2014 novel of the same name, The Ballad of a Small Player stars Colin Farrell as an English con man passing himself off as a lord as he stays holed up in Macau
Tilda Swinton and Fala Chen are also confirmed to star, with filming in Macau set for June to August, and extras wanted – particularly those with professional casino or hotel experience