There’s ‘Clear, Present Danger’ at John Wayne

Actor Harrison Ford was stalked by an assassin Thursday night at John Wayne Airport before dozens of onlookers.

As he picked up his luggage from the carousel in the baggage claim area, a steely, gun-wielding CIA operative watched his every move from the level above and seemed ready to strike at any moment.

But rest easy. Ford was reprising his role as CIA analyst Jack Ryan, and Willem Dafoe was the would-be assassin for the upcoming movie “Clear and Present Danger” based on the thriller by Tom Clancy.

John Wayne Airport was transformed into Bogota’s El Dorado International Airport for the filming. At the top of the elevators, a sign read, “Bienvenidos a Bogota!” and an ice cream stand became “ refrescos “ and a newsstand became “ periodicos y revistas .”

Bewildered travelers stepped off flights from throughout the country and took a double-take upon arrival. Signs set up by Paramount Pictures advised travelers that the movie was being filmed.

“People here today were actually upset because they thought they had landed in Bogota,” said Phillip Noyce, the film’s director. “Here they thought they were going to land in Orange County and they see this.”

Clancy’s book is about a secret invasion of Colombia by elite U.S. troops and the murders of the American ambassador to Colombia and the director of the FBI.

Ford, as Ryan, investigates the murders and discovers shocking links to a Colombian drug cartel. The book has parallels to the Iran-Contra scandal, as covert operations are launched without notification of Congress. Dafoe is the shadowy CIA operative.

Shooting for the film, which is due in theaters this summer, is to conclude tonight at John Wayne Airport, and has already taken place at the Los Alamitos Armed Forces Reserve Center and Los Angeles International Airport. After tonight’s filming, the crew and cast head to Washington, and then on to Mexico for the rest of January and February.

The film’s publicist, Don Levy, declined to say exactly what scenes are to be shot at John Wayne Airport.

“I can’t go into too much detail because the scenes kind of form a key plot point, and I wouldn’t want to spoil the fun,” he said. “It’s safe to say, however, that the scenes will involve Harrison Ford arriving in Bogota, Colombia.”

While officials at John Wayne Airport have told the production crews that they cannot close off any portion of the airport, they have recommended that scenes be shot after 11 p.m. after the last flight arrives.

Even at 7 p.m. Thursday, the airport was practically deserted as Ford, Dafoe and Noyce walked through the scenes that were to be shot throughout the night and until about 5 a.m.

Airport spokeswoman Courtney C. Wiercioch said the production company approached county officials several weeks ago about shooting scenes on both levels of John Wayne Airport, including the baggage claim area.

Wiercioch said the airport is being requested more and more often as a filming location and, recently, CBS inquired about using John Wayne Airport for a proposed miniseries on the trial of Lyle and Erik Menendez.

Publicists for “Clear and Present Danger” stressed that access to the set is restricted, and most of the filming will take place late at night into early morning.

“It’s all-night shooting,” Levy said. “When you are shooting in an airport or busy place, the fewer people the better. We have all the background extras we need. Our major concern is that we not attract an unnecessary crowd.”