Filming of ‘Evolution’ Briefly Interrupted by Fire on the Set

Production on the upcoming DreamWorks film “Evolution” was halted by a fire Tuesday morning after pyrotechnic special effects ignited a portion of the Manhattan Beach set. Authorities said no one was injured.

As smoke billowed up, scores of actors, extras and production staff poured out of the Raleigh Studios lot, in the 1700 block of Rosecrans Avenue, near Aviation Boulevard.

Actor David Duchovny, one of the film’s stars, was quickly whisked to a nearby shopping center, while other actors--dressed in blue gorilla suits--milled about. While they waited for the situation to settle down, many of the gorillas pulled out cell phones to call friends or relatives to assure them they were fine.

The incident occurred after a fireball made of liquid propane ignited the scenery about 10:15 a.m., said Dennis Groat, Manhattan Beach fire chief.

“There were five propane releases, each of which made a fireball about 15 feet in diameter. They were sequential shots, but it looks like one continuous fireball,” Groat said. Firefighters, who were standing by in case of an accident, quickly extinguished the blaze.

“The stunt was in the planning for weeks, and that’s why we had a crew here to be prepared,” he added.

The film, directed by Ivan Reitman, of “Ghostbusters” fame, is in its third month of production. Officials said they planned to continue filming today.