A crew member on Dept. Q died after being seriously injured at FirstStage studios in Leith on Thursday. Emergency crews were called to the film studio at about 15:00, and the man was pronounced dead a short time later.
FirstStage and Dept. Q
Left Bank Pictures said: "We are deeply shocked and saddened by the tragic death of a member of our Dept Q crew." The company added: "Our thoughts are with their family, friends and colleagues at this incredibly difficult time, and we are offering support for those affected."
FirstStage was started in 2020 by Jason, the son of Sean Connery, after it took over an empty former warehouse unit in Leith. The facility includes five sound stages and production office space, and Screen Scotland invested £1m towards the initial set up.
Police Scotland and the HSE
Police Scotland said the death was not being treated as suspicious, while inquiries into the circumstances were ongoing. The Health and Safety Executive said it was aware of the incident, placing the focus on how a serious injury at a working studio became a fatality rather than on any wider claim about the production itself.
FirstStage has also hosted filming for The Rig for Amazon and part of Infinity War. For Dept. Q, the immediate issue is simpler and sharper: work at the Edinburgh site has been halted by a death, and the unanswered question is what happened inside the studio before emergency crews arrived.
