Hollywood celebrities make an appearance in Mesquite, filming new movie ‘Flight Risk’

By: Breven Honda

For two days in July, Hollywood stars Mel Gibson and Mark Wahlberg were in Mesquite filming a new action-thrilling movie.

Gibson is directing a movie called, “Flight Risk,” with Wahlberg as the star in the lead role.

“Flight Risk” is about an Air Marshall who transports a fugitive across the Alaskan wilderness with a small plane. However, the fugitive is trapped when he thinks the pilot is not who he says he is.

So how did “Flight Risk” go from filming in Alaska, to shooting in Mesquite, when it was more than 115 degrees in two completely different climates?

“Well, and to be honest with you, which is so funny about this movie, the whole plotline is in Alaska, in Anchorage,” Mesquite City Councilwoman Karen Fielding said on July 25. “When they were filming last Friday, it was 117 degrees. So, it could have been more farther than the original, Anchorage, where they were the movie plot is supposed to be.

“Mesquite can be a chameleon and we can change to whatever directors want and utilize.”

As a result of the filming crew wanting to film in Mesquite, certain things needed to be approved.

Fielding said the movie personnel did their job to make sure every part of the scene was covered from talking to the Mesquite Airport and the Mesquite Fire and Rescue. 

“They had to work with the FAA, they had to work with the city of Mesquite and they had to close down the airport,” Fielding said. “And then, they had to utilize some of our fire trucks and ambulances.

In addition to the emergency vehicles being used, four firefighters – Robert Ceja, Cody Cannon, Vincente Pinto and Logan Aug – from the Mesquite Fire and Rescue were part of the filming. 

“They were pretty excited to be involved in the in the making of this movie up there,” Fielding said. “And, who knows how much of it’s going to be actually aired, but the fact that it was here for two days, a lot of people were able to meet and see Mark Wahlberg.”

None of the four Mesquite firefighters had any speaking roles. In the scene that was filmed, the four Mesquite firefighters responded to a small plane crash and to help those on board.

As much as this is being recorded, safety is one of the top priorities even when an emergency is taking place.

“Sometimes in movies, they like to dramatize the events and sometimes that could include driving vehicles, potentially in an unsafe manner,” Mesquite Fire Deputy Chief Shawn Tobler said. “And as part of our briefing with our crew is to ensure that any kind of operations that occurred with them and our equipment were done in a safe manner.

“If they had any questions of potential safety issues, they were able to stop what they’re doing, call a time out and discuss it with either the producers, the fire chief or myself.”

Ultimately, it was memorable moment for Tobler and the Mesquite Fire and Rescue Department.

Tobler said having his firefighters be part of the filming, even if the scene lasts one second in the final piece, was exciting.

“It was an exciting moment for our department to be able to be a part of a movie production even though it was a small thing in the in the movie,” Tobler said. “But it was a great experience for our crews. We were able to go up there and be a part of that and meet a couple of well-known Hollywood figures. They had an overall good experience and participate in part of the movie set.”

The four firefighters were just a small amount of community admiration for Gibson and Wahlberg. The duo have worked together in the past, including in “Father Stu” and “Daddy’s Home.”

When Wahlberg, Gibson and their co-workers were not working on the movie, they were around the community and eating at different restaurants. 

“I know I heard (Wahlberg) was out there at the CasaBlanca hotel,” Fielding said. “Mel Gibson had dinner at Gregory’s. So did his other producers and stuff. So, it’s really fun to have them out in our community to see everything that we have from fabulous food and that welcoming committee that everybody welcomes them to Mesquite. It was pretty awesome.”

With the positive interactions the community and Fielding had, including the councilwoman shaking Gibson’s hand, she hopes that it is only the beginning for movies to come to Mesquite.

“I thanked him for coming in and I told him, ‘Please come back and we welcome you back anytime,’” Fielding said to Gibson. “So, I really do think that this will open our door for maybe some other people coming to Mesquite.”