Mystery helicopter buzzing east Hamilton was shooting new Jeremy Renner crime drama
You can blame Jeremy Renner - sort of - for low-flying mystery helicopters buzzing over the lower city Saturday.
Residents reported black helicopters hovering over neighbourhoods from Kirkendall all the way east to McQuesten and the beach strip for hours that day.
The constant circling of logo-less choppers spurred online speculation about possible police investigations and regretful reminiscing about past military training - but in reality, it was just another example of the film industry taking off in Hamilton.
The black helicopter showing up in shaky local Facebook videos belonged to Brampton-based Four Seasons Aviation, which spent most of Saturday afternoon and evening shooting aerial footage for the new Paramount Plus streaming series Mayor of Kingstown."
The new crime drama stars Jeremy Renner of The Avengers" and Mission Impossible" fame, as well as co-creator and actor Hugh Dillon, also known as the longtime frontman for rock group The Headstones.
We were working around the Stelco area and we were chasing a car around the streets, that sort of stuff," said Four Seasons owner David Tommasini, who figures the single helicopter - yes, it was actually just one, very busy chopper - spent the most time hovering over the east end.
The helicopter is outfitted with a large, gyrostabilized camera ball" that allows movie-quality, high-definition shooting from hundreds of feet in the air.
Tommasini said his company visits the Hamilton skyline a few times a year to do aerial cinematography" - and the opportunities are only growing along with the industry, he noted.
The latest sky shoot for the Mayor of Kingstown" wrapped up on the weekend, but don't be surprised if you see Renner or Dillon hanging around the east end.
The series, about a Michigan prison town and its power broker family, has already filmed plenty of on-the-ground footage at locations on Beach Road, Kenilworth Avenue and Barton Street.
Matthew Van Dongen is a Hamilton-based reporter covering transportation for The Spectator. Reach him via email: mvandongen@thespec.com