Crews at Kennedy Space Center for Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum film 'Project Artemis,' things to know

A movie, a rocket launch, a crewed launch ... Kennedy Space Center has been a hotbed of activity this week.

Production trucks were spotted there last week, and on Wednesday, about 25 to 30 vintage cars lined the parking lot in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building. Some prop pieces like light poles were installed, too (more on those below).

Photos and videos on social media suggest film crews are on scene for "Project Artemis," a 1960s space race film starring Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum, Ray Romano and Jim Rash.

FLORIDA TODAY's Space Team reached out to Kennedy Space Center about filming: "A romantic comedy will be filmed at various locations on Kennedy over the next several weeks. It will be a closed set, and all of the extras have been cast."

Greg Diesel Walck, who was at the Kennedy Space Center press site covering the Crew-6 mission, said he "was excited to see the vintage cars and helicopter filming for this new movie about the space race. Vintage NASA, it should be a great film."

Directed by Greg Berlanti, the film originally starred Johansson and fellow "Avengers" co-star Chris Evans, according to the Hollywood Reporter, before Tatum was cast as his replacement in July. That month, Berlanti also took over directing duties after actor Jason Bateman left the project, THR reports.

Production on the film coincides with rocket launches at Kennedy Space Center:

• SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 Starlink mission from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station at 6:13 p.m. EST Monday, Feb. 27.

• NASA and SpaceX will launch the Crew-6 mission to the International Space Station from Kennedy Space Center. The launch was scrubbed earlier this week, and teams are ready to try again early Thursday, March 2.

FLORIDA TODAY's Space Team, Emre Kelly, Jamie Groh, John McCarthy, Craig Bailey, Malcolm Denemark and Tim Shortt, will provide coverage of the crewed SpaceX launch at floridatoday.com/space.

Sending astronauts, cosmonauts to space: Here are 10 things to know about NASA's SpaceX Crew-6 launch

Here's what we know about "Project Artemis," the movie's stars and Kennedy Space Center (ahem, and Florida's) role in the film.

What is "Project Artemis?"

"Project Artemis" is a 1960s space race film for Apple TV, starring Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson, Woody Harrelson, Ray Romano and Jim Rash. It is being directed by Greg Berlanti with a script written by Rose Gilroy.

The film has been described as a romantic comedy set around the 1968 Apollo 11 moon launch, which occurred at Kennedy Space Center.

Production is underway with scenes already shot in Tybee Island, Georgia, in December, and filming at Kennedy Space Center in late February and March 2023. It is not known when the film is scheduled for release.

Photos from the set: Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johansson, who looks stunning in a vintage outfit and retro hairstyle

Is Scarlett Johansson in Florida to film a movie?

According to posts on social media, there is a photo of Johansson wearing a red dress and her hair in a vintage style with the caption: "Scarlett Johansson on the set of 'Project Artemis' today (Feb. 27) in Florida."

What scenes are being shot at Kennedy Space Center?

On Wednesday, March 1, about 30 cars were parked in front of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The VAB, one of the largest single-story buildings in the world, is where crews build space vehicle components such as the space shuttles, the Saturn V rocket and Artemis I rocket.

Some light poles set by the vintage cars are movie props − they moved when they were touched, and they were on a platform. Also, FLORIDA TODAY's Space Team noted, the light poles were set where they shouldn't be, and the shape of the pole doesn't look like any of the light poles at Kennedy Space Center.

Of the vintage cars, these stuck out:

• a bright blue vehicle with a News 6 logo and "CBKY-TV Beyond the Story" painted on the side in white

• a white John F. Kennedy Space Center Emergency Response vintage ambulance van

• a vintage white Ranch Wagon limousine with the NASA logo and "National Aeronautics and Space Administration" painted on the driver's side door

• a red vintage N.A.S.A./KSC fire department truck

• a gold Chevelle

• a Newswatch van

On Feb. 27, as the sun went down, a helicopter got aerial views of the areas around the Vehicle Assembly Building. Film crews were stationed around the Kennedy Space Center press site.

Is this the first space movie filmed at Kennedy Space Center?

No. "Project Artemis" joins a long list of movies that have been filmed at Kennedy Space Center. It could, however, be the first space movie in 2023 to film at the space center.

What other movies have been filmed at Kennedy Space Center, Florida?

• "First Man," starring Ryan Gosling as astronaut Neil Armstrong, first human to walk on the moon; Corey Stoll as Buzz Aldrin; and Claire Foy as Janet Armstrong

• "Armageddon," starring Bruce Willis, Ben Affleck, Liv Tyler, Steve Buscemi and Owen Wilson

• "Tomorrowland," starring George Clooney, Britt Robertson and Hugh Laurie

Who is Greg Berlanti?

Fans of DC will know Greg Berlanti as a showrunner and executive producer of CW faves like "Arrow" and "The Flash." He has directed films like "Love, Simon" (starring Nick Robinson, Jennifer Garer and Josh Duhamel) and "Life As We Know It" (starring Duhamel and Katherine Heigl).

Where was "Project Artemis" filmed?

News reports say filming for the Johansson-Tatum romantic comedy started in October 2022. As of March 1, 2023, these are the locations that "Project Artemis" has been filmed:

• on a movie set in Georgia

• Tybee Island, Georgia

• Kennedy Space Center, Florida

Will "Project Artemis" be released in the theaters?

It is not known whether "Project Artemis" will be released exclusively on Apple TV or in select theaters nationwide.

Contributing: Jamie Groh, FLORIDA TODAY

Please consider subscribing to a USA TODAY Network-Florida newspaper at offers.usatodaynetwork.com/network-regional-florida.

Sangalang is a Florida Audience Team lead producer and social media champ. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @byjensangalang.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Channing Tatum, Scarlett Johansson for Apple TV: Scenes shot in Florida