Living (2022)

Posted on by Kent Film Office
Bill Nighy, as Williams, stands in front of a large, grey, historic courthouse building. He is wearing a black pinstripe suit, polka dot tie, and black bowler hat. He carries an umbrella in his hand and is looking at a watch on his wrist.

Bill Nighy in Living (2022) © Ross Ferguson

Director: Oliver Hermanus
Starring: Bill Nighy, Aimee Lou Wood, Alex Sharp
Production Company: County Hall, Film4, Filmgate Films, Ingenious, Kurosawa Production Co., Lipsync Productions, Number 9 Films
Kent Locations Used: The Historic Dockyard Chatham, King’s Theatre – Chatham

Living (2022) is an English-language adaptation of Akira Kurosawa’s classic film Ikiru by Kazuo Ishiguro, set in 1950s London.

Directed by Oliver Hermanus (Moffie, Beauty), Living stars Bill Nighy (The Boat that Rocked (2009), Pokémon: Detective Pikachu (2019)) as Williams, Aimee Lou Wood (Sex Education (2021), The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2022)) as Margaret Harris and Alex Sharp (The Trial of the Chicago 7, The Hustle) as Peter Wakeling.

In June and July 2021, production visited The Historic Dockyard Chatham to film various scenes. The exterior of the Lead and Paint Mill doubles as the bomb site which Williams later transforms into a playground, the Ropery alley doubles for the streets of London, and the Commissioner’s House Gardens doubles for St James’s Park in London.

A historic 17th-Century dockyard spanning over 80 acres, Chatham Dockyard contains over 100 buildings dating from the Georgian and Victorian Periods. It is the most popular filming location in Kent, having played host to many high-profile films and TV shows. Most recently, Operation Mincemeat (2022), The Nevers (2021) and The Phantom of the Open (2022) shot various scenes on the site.

A group of people sit in an old-fashioned cinema.

Behind the scenes at King’s Theatre, Chatham. Alex Sharp, Bill Nighy and Aimee Lou Wood with Spotlites staff © Spotlites

Filming also took place at King’s Theatre in Chatham, where Bill Nighy and Aimee Lou Wood’s characters watch a film at the cinema. Chatham is a historic town situated in Medway, North Kent and is known for its historic dockyard, army barracks and high street. The Last Rite (2021) also filmed a short scene in Chatham town.

Living was released in UK cinemas on Friday 4th November 2022.

For more information about Kent’s Filming History please visit our Movie Map.