Fantastic Four star Jamie Bell praises New Zealand

Jamie Bell in 6 Days directed by Toa Fraser. Photo / Supplied

British star Jamie Bell has spoken about filming the SAS thriller 6 Days in New Zealand.

Bell was in Auckland recently shooting the movie, based on the 1980 siege of the Iranian Embassy in London.

It's Bell's third film project in New Zealand, after shooting King Kong and Tintin in Wellington.

"I love filming in New Zealand," he said while promoting his Fantastic Four movie in New York. "I've worked down there a couple of times with Peter Jackson and a few different things. The great thing about working in New Zealand is that they have great crews. They have those crews that rival crews from anywhere else in the world, I think. Everyone from every kind of department is very, very talented and some of the best in the world. Especially at visual effects and stuff, it's unbelievable."

Bell plays Special Air Service member Rusty Firmin, who led an assault team to free 26 hostages from their terrorist captors.

"The movie is really two things," says Bell. "It's about peace and violence. There is one man who wants a peaceful conclusion and there is another side, a military organisation, who doesn't deal with peace. They only deal in conflict.

"So it's about those two things balancing each other out."

The shoot shifted this month to filming exteriors in London. The film reteams Fraser with his Dead Lands screenwriter Glenn Standring, and producer Matthew Metcalfe

The film is part-funded by the New Zealand Film Commission which contributed $1.35 million.