Wellywood sign given go ahead

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A controversial sign designed to celebrate the capital's creativity is going ahead despite claims it's a tacky embarrassment.

Wellington International Airport announced yesterday it would put up a 30m-long Wellywood sign on the Miramar Peninsula.

The salute to the capital's film industry in the style of the Hollywood sign gained resource consent from Wellington City Council last year but was delayed while the airport considered other proposals in the wake of a public backlash.

"This sign will make us Lord of Cringe," said Wellington comedian Raybon Kan.

"You would have to be tone deaf about coolness...to want to put up a monument to something that says, 'We're an imitator'."

Wellington Airport chief executive Steve Fitzgerald said the sign was the best way to celebrate the city's industry.

However, the news sparked a rush of people voicing their opposition on Twitter.

"Wellywood sign I will burn you down. I will murder you," wrote musician Samuel Flynn Scott.

The airport has given no indication of how soon the sign will go up, its colour or how much it will cost.