The first stunning pictures of the brand new Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo have been unveiled, and they show the attraction’s exclusive Ministry of Magic set.
While the wizarding headquarters doesn’t feature at London’s Harry Potter studio tour (perhaps it’s under a giant invisibility cloak), it looks set to be a showstopping highlight in Japan.
Images reveal the sheer size of the full-scale set, which was one of the largest ever created for the Harry Potter films, spanning over 900 square metres, flanked by 30ft- (9m) tall walls and containing 30,000 tiles.
‘Each tile would be painted with six different colours before being lacquered to give the impression of a ceramic tile,’ the studio said. ‘It was a time-consuming process that took filmmakers 22 weeks to complete.
The first stunning pictures of the brand-new Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo have been unveiled, and they show the attraction’s exclusive Ministry of Magic set
While the wizarding headquarters doesn’t feature at London’s Harry Potter studio tour (perhaps it’s under a giant invisibility cloak), it looks set to be a showstopping highlight in Japan
From the Ministry to Hogwarts, Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo will also be home to the Great Hall, pictured above
‘The set was so large that hundreds of extras were needed to play Ministry employees during large crowd scenes.
‘Many of the people you see on-screen are crewmembers in costume.
‘With the design inspired by Victorian architecture, this set was so intricate to create that the hours needed to build one of this size and complexity would take a single person working non-stop over 20 years to complete.
The Great Hall set, pictured above, was inspired by ‘traditional British architecture, with the stone-paved floors, elongated windows, and wood-panelled walls inspired by Christ Church College at the University of Oxford’
The Diagon Alley set will also feature at the Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo in Japan, as pictured above
‘Just like a Ministry of Magic employee commuting to work via the Floo Network, visitors can step into one of the enormous fireplaces each standing over nine-feet [three metres] tall and pose for photos and videos as smoke and lighting effects mimic the magical cloud of floo powder all around them.’
Fans will witness the ministry dressed for its appearance in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One when Harry, Ron and Hermione take on the identities of ministry workers in order to break in.
The set, said to be Daniel Radcliffe’s all-time favourite from his time filming the Harry Potter series, was made in the UK by original filmmakers before being carefully transported to Tokyo, where it will open to the public when the studio tour lets in visitors for the first time on June 16.
The Great Hall set also appears at the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, pictured above
The Diagon Alley set, pictured above as it appears at the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter
Fans at the Tokyo studio will also be able to step onto Platform 9 and three quarters and experience the Hogwarts Express. Above is a picture of the set as it appears at the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London
Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo will be the largest indoor Harry Potter attraction in the world following the success of Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – the Making of Harry Potter, which opened in 2012.
The new tour will feature other ‘exclusive’ sets that were also made in the UK by original filmmakers and transported to Tokyo.
For instance, the attraction will be home to a set of the Great Hall from Hogwarts Castle. Of this set, the studio said: ‘Production designer Stuart Craig took influences from traditional British architecture, with the stone-paved floors, elongated windows, and wood-panelled walls inspired by Christ Church College at the University of Oxford.
‘Despite real-world influences, visitors will enjoy all kinds of magic that took place in the Great Hall, from the enchanted ceiling full of floating candles initially achieved using real flames before being replaced with visual effects, to the feasts that were freshly cooked for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, but then changed to cast resin models for the later films.’
A Diagon Alley set will also feature at the Tokyo attraction and include shops such as Gringotts Wizarding Bank and the Magical Menagerie.
Fans at the Tokyo studio will also be able to step onto Platform 9 and three quarters and experience the Hogwarts Express, which transports students to the school of witchcraft and wizardry in the Harry Potter world.
Torben Jensen, vice president and general manager at the Tokyo studio, said: ‘We’re so excited to reveal our first exclusive set, the Ministry of Magic.
‘Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo will be the only place in the world where fans can step foot into the full-scale set just as Harry, Ron and Hermione would have done.’
The image above shows how the Great Hall looked in the Harry Potter movies
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