Scarlett’s capital hideaway

Star loves ‘quiet’ Wellywood, writes Hannah McKee.

SHE may be one of the world’s biggest film stars, but Scarlett Johansson enjoyed flying under the radar while working for six months in Wellington.

The 31-year-old moved her partner, Romain Dauriac, and their toddler daughter, Rose, to Seatoun while filming Ghost in the Shell earlier this year – and has now opened up about how much she enjoyed being able to relax in ‘‘a quiet place’’ like New Zealand, away from her usual high-profile, paparazzibesieged Hollywood life.

She even said she’d enjoyed family trips to Wellington zoo during her stay.

The actress was spotted at local eateries such as Coco at the Roxy and Park Kitchen, as well as at a local gym, Chipmunks playland in Lyall Bay and on a yacht in Wellington Harbour.

But Johansson has said she spent her time in the capital mostly focusing on work.

‘‘You know, I work a lot so, really, it’s a quiet place, people are nice and I’m able to focus on work here a lot, it’s not too distracting,’’ she said.

‘‘I think they’ve probably brought us here so we all only focus on work ... it’s, you know, I think it’s a nice studio to work in.’’

Johansson said she had enjoyed some things in Wellington on days off, but that she was ‘‘pretty low-key’’.

‘‘I have a kid and we go to the zoo, and do kids’ stuff, it’s nice, the zoo’s awesome. It’s been pretty low-key, I’m a creature of comfort.

‘‘It’s a nice crew, we’ve been having a really good time and, like I said, it’s been really pleasant to shoot here, we have a lot of privacy and yeah, it’s been good.’’

Johansson, who wears a Weta Workshop silicon bodysuit for her role as a cyborg with a human brain in Ghost in the Shell, said the role had been particularly challenging. ‘‘I don’t wear that very often, thank God. It’s hot when you don’t want it to be and cold when you don’t want it to be.’’