Taika Waititi spotted in Dunedin scouting sites for television commercial

Dunedin Mayor Aaron Hawkins rubs shoulders with Hollywood star Taika Waititi during his recent visit to the city. Photo / Supplied

Hollywood A-lister Taika Waititi was in Dunedin again at the weekend, mixing with locals at some of the city's bars and restaurants.

Among those rubbing shoulders with the globetrotting director was Mayor Aaron Hawkins, who posted a photo of himself with Waititi, saying "Couldn't find a photo with my own Dad, so made Taika Waititi pose for this one instead. Happy Father's Day x".

Hawkins said they talked about the Scarfies house, and how pleased he was to see it still standing.

Members of the public spotted Waititi at Woof!, Pequeno Lounge Bar, and Morning Magpie cafe where he had breakfast with his children.

He was also at No 7 Balmac, where he used his Instagram account with 3.1 million followers to congratulate Chloe Bennett for winning the outstanding barista of the year award at the 2022 Otago Hospitality Awards.

Film Otago and Southland co-ordinator Antony Deaker confirmed Waititi was officially in Dunedin to scout sites for an upcoming television commercial he is directing.

However, he could not say what the advertising project was.

"It seems he comes here a lot. We've got great architecture [for filming]. That's the thing."

Waititi was last in Dunedin in April this year, searching for filming locations for a television series adaptation of the popular 1980s movie Time Bandits.

Waititi is an executive producer, co-writer and director of the television series, which is in development at Apple.

Waititi's film career was set in motion by his acting debut in the classic 1999 student adventure film Scarfies, which was set and filmed in Dunedin.

More recently, he has won acclaim for the popular films Thor: Ragnarok and Jojo Rabbit.