Avast, shipmates! The original pirate adventure story is getting a fresh adaptation.
Treasure Island, the swashbuckling hunt for lost bounty, is once again coming to the small screen.
Based on the 1883 novel by Scottish novelist Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island stars Hayley Attwell and David Oyelowo.
With locations ranging from the British coastline, to Jamaica and the fictional Skeleton Island, it’s truly a global treasure hunt.
Here’s all you need to know about Treasure Island.
What is Treasure Island all about?
Young Jim Hawkins and his fiercely determined mother Bess come into possession of Captain Flint’s legendary treasure map, when a mysterious pirate, Billy Bones, arrives at their door.
Soon, they are swept into a brutal race for unimaginable riches against Long John Silver, a pirate with his own determined ambitions on the treasure.
Crossing the Atlantic aboard the Hispaniola, Jim and Bess enter a world of shifting loyalties, ruthless ambition and deadly secrets, where trust can be as dangerous as betrayal.
Expect swashbuckling sword fights, thrilling sea battles and farflung locations from the moment the hunt for the treasure begins.
Treasure Island filming locations
The adventure starts on the British coast, before voyaging to Jamaica and the fictional Skeleton Island, but most of the series was filmed on the island of Tenerife, swapping the Caribbean for the Mediterranean.
Production designer Marcus Wookey told all about the Treasure Island filming locations.
The South Wales coastline is where the adventure begins
The opening episode sees Billy Bones and Long John Silver wash up on the British coast, after a brutal shipwreck.
‘We only had one day to film the whole sequence,’ remembers Wookey. ‘We got there as the tide was receding and we shot until it started coming back again.’
These scenes were filmed on the beaches by Bridgend, South Wales, and is where the coveted treasure map is washed ashore, sparking the whole adventure.
Gloucestershire doubled up as 18th century Britain
Several key scenes in the first episode take place within the fictional Admiral Benbow Inn, run by the widowed Bess Hawkins.
While the interior scenes were filmed on a custom set built within a derelict car warehouse in Tenerife, the exterior for the tavern was shot at Gloucestershire’s Spoonbed Farmhouse, just outside of Tetbury.
A road had to be built from scratch in front of the farmhouse to create the sense of a typical 18th century stagecoach inn.
Scenes showing Bess and Jim Hawkins seeking passage to Jamaica were filmed at the historic Westonbirt House, a Grade I listed mansion that’s now used as a school and wedding venue, and recently featured as a filming location for Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials.
The building was constructed in the 19th century, with changes to the interior furniture having to be adapted ahead of filming.
Tenerife stood in as Skeleton Island
The voyage to the Caribbean sees Bess and Jim Hawkins attempt to outwit Long John Silver. While interior scenes were filmed in a studio, the battle scenes on the ship’s deck were filmed on location in Tenerife, with a stationary purpose-built ship on the coastal edge.
‘We ended up using camera wizardry, with it moving and rocking rather than the ship,’ explains Wookey. ‘The camera moves to make the ship travel, using the lens of the camera to move it forward. We built the ship on the edge of the seashore, and that allowed us to film so we had the sea in the background.’
The script originally included scenes set in the port, but these had to be cut due to extreme weather during filming.
Mount Teide is where the series reaches a dramatic climax
The adventure reaches a nail-biting crescendo as Jim Hawkins and Long John Silver race to the lost treasure.
The climatic scenes were filmed in the shadow of Tenerife’s dormant volcano, which has notably been used as a filming location for The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power.
‘For Skeleton Island, we shot in the centre of Tenerife on Mount Teide. There’s forests, and there is craggy, volcanic rock,’ explains Wookey.
‘We shot also in the south of Tenerife, right by the airport there, there’s some stunning rock formations and a dried up riverbed, which we use for where the treasure is buried.’
Who is in the Treasure Island cast?
David Oyelowo (Silo) leads the cast as Long John Silver, a pirate on a mission to retrieve the lost treasure of Captain Flint.
Tom Sweet (BBC’s Great Expectations) stars as Jim Hawkins,a young lad yearning for adventure, but gets caught up in Long John Silver’s dastardly plan. Hayley Atwell (Avengers: Doomsday) plays his mother, Bess Hawkins, a widowed innkeeper determined to find a better life for herself and Jim.
The series also features Jack Huston (Boardwalk Empire) as Aaron Graham, joining the Hawkins’ on their voyage, and Tomer Capone (The Boys) as pirate Billy Bones.
How can I watch Treasure Island?
Treasure Island premieres exclusively on Paramount+ in the UK & Ireland on Monday, October 12.
Viewers in the US can catch the swashbuckling adventure on MGM+ from Sunday, October 11.
Episodes drop weekly with the series finale airing on Sunday, November 15 in the US, and Monday, November 16 in the UK and Ireland.
Is there a trailer?
Check out the trailer for Treasure Island below.
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