Pinewood Shepperton has revealed a major Hollywood production, due to be filmed at its historic Pinewood Studios near London had been shut down, costing the firm around £3 million.

Pinewood said the cancellation of the production will hit film revenues to the tune of about £3.0 million, mainly in 2008.

“As previously noted, against the context of the current Writers' Guild of America strike and the uncertainty of the forthcoming negotiations of the Screen Actors Guild, whilst every effort will now be made to replace revenues this will prove challenging,” the company said in its statement.

Pinewood, famed for the James Bond and Harry Potter films, added that despite the cancellation it anticipates performance in 2007 and for 2008 to be in line with expectations.

The studio hasn’t named the film but has confirmed that it was a “major Hollywood blockbuster.”

The writers’ strike has brought chaos to the US movie and television industry, stopping talk-shows and production of hits like Desperate Housewives. The writers want a greater share of profits from DVD sales and new media developments and have so far refused to back down.

Last week Pinewood announced plans to expand its site to create the biggest film-making centre outside of Hollywood. The £200 million project will include construction of a medieval castle, a Venetian canal and a Californian high school.

If planning permission is granted the expansion would double the size of the complex in Iver Heath, Berkshire, by building on 100 acres of adjacent green belt land.

Pinewood Shepperton was formed after Pinewood purchased its rival Shepperton Studios in 2001.

Between them, the two studios have created almost 1,500 films and boast more than 30 film stages, two digital TV studios, a unique underwater stage and the largest stage in Europe. But increasingly, Central and Eastern Europe have begun to rival Britain as a location, partly because of the lower costs of shooting there.

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