Set Report From 'Thunderbirds' Production

Donning his fake microphone headset, Paxton took one last bite and sauntered over to the set of Thunderbirds Two, one of five key vehicles -- the others range from a rocket to a space station -- in the movie, which is being directed by Jonathan Frakes ("Star Trek: Insurrection").

Paxton is aware that in his current role, he is taking on a character beloved around most of the world -- with the exception of the United States. Never mind that the character was originally played by a puppet. The "Thunderbirds" TV series achieved cult status in the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan even though its Space Age toys and vehicles weren't always built to scale and the leading actors were made of wood.

What Paxton might not know is that "Thunderbirds" has the largest budget -- at $50 million-plus -- that the successful British production company Working Title ("Johnny English") has ever toyed with. At its height of activity at Pinewood Studios, the Working Title production is spending about $250,000 a day and employing more than 200 construction specialists across eight stages.