Havoc on Netflix: Tom Hardy Battles Crime in a Gritty American City—Filmed in Wales

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Netflix’s latest action thriller, Havoc, is set to showcase Wales as a prime filmmaking destination on the global stage, according to the film’s creators. Starring Tom Hardy as a “jaded” detective navigating the fallout of a botched drug deal, the movie is set in an unnamed American city but was filmed entirely across locations in Wales, including Cardiff, Swansea, and Port Talbot.

Director Gareth Evans, a Welsh native from Hirwaun, Rhondda Cynon Taf, shared his vision behind the film:

“I had this, like, one core image which was a corrupt cop in a crime scene where a drug deal’s gone wrong and for whatever reason he was scooping cocaine into a coffee cup. And it all mushroomed out from there.”

Evans, known for The Raid and Gangs of London, expressed his excitement about Tom Hardy joining the project not only as the lead actor but also as a producer:

“One of the nicest things about Tom [is] I knew I was in my wheelhouse when it came to action film-making, but with Tom his skillset is deep dive explorations into morally complex characters and so we were able to fuse two styles together.”

The production faced delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the US writers’ strike but resumed filming in 2021. Despite the story’s American setting, Evans found recreating a US city in south Wales “challenging” but was determined to bring work to the region:

“I started going around, like, Swansea, Port Talbot, Cardiff and Newport, looking for any little bit of architecture that I could find that might pass as a little bit Americana. And so we took a look and we thought if we can get 30% or 40% real in camera then the VFX (visual effects) can take care of the rest.”

Iconic Welsh sites were transformed for the film, with Swansea’s Brangwyn Hall standing in as an American police precinct and Swansea University’s Bay campus providing street scenes. A fishing shack was also constructed in the Merthyr Mawr countryside.

The film’s production was a collaboration between US company XYZ Films and Wales-based Severn Studios. Aram Tertzakian, a founder of XYZ Films, praised Wales as a filmmaking hub:

“Gareth brought me to Wales for this project because he is a great patriot and wanted to figure out how to make films in Wales. I think it’s always been seen as an option but when they see Havoc and what we pulled off, I think it’s going to blow their minds and really make Wales a lot more viable for a lot of people. Wales is one of the good guys. You’ve got really hard working crews, a lot of dedication and love for the game. You get some amazing locations, both interiors and exteriors and we had a blast.”

According to Netflix and Creative Wales, Havoc is the largest feature film ever shot entirely in Wales, with post-production also completed in Cardiff. Netflix reports that its productions in Wales, including Sex Education, have contributed over £200 million to the UK economy since 2020.

Welsh Minister for Culture Jack Sargeant highlighted the impact of such projects:

“We are immensely proud of our Welsh creative industries, which employ over 35,000 talented individuals, and the world-class infrastructure we have in place for film and TV productions.”

Havoc premieres on Netflix on April 25, 2025, marking a significant milestone for Welsh cinema and its growing reputation as a versatile filming location.