When the remake of the ’80s cult favorite “Red Dawn” hits the big screen next year, local residents will see some familiar sights since actors and film crews descended on the community to film scenes for it this week.

Film crews have been out at the old Notre Dame High School, making use of the football field and parking lot. They were planning to be there specifically through Friday, but, in general, they’re in Michigan through early December in communities including Detroit, Troy, Mount Clemens and Pontiac, said publicist Peter Silbermann.

“It was a perfect location,” he said of the Harper Woods spot. “We needed a football field, and it’s a big one and it works perfectly for this production,” he said.

“It’s going to be a fabulous action thriller and we’re thrilled to be here in Michigan,” Silbermann said.

Some of the cast members in this remake include Chris Hemsworth, Josh Peck, Isabel Lucas and Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman’s adopted son Connor Cruise.

Wolverine Productions LLC/Contra Film is working on the film, which will be distributed by MGM. The movie is scheduled to premiere in September of next year.

The original film came out in 1984 and was about teens who work together to fight off invading Soviet Union forces, according to www.imdb.com. It starred the likes of Patrick Swayze, Lea Thompson, C. Thomas Howell, Charlie Sheen and Jennifer Grey.

With the days of the Soviet Union’s rule long over, things have changed slightly in the remake with forces from China and Russia playing the invading forces this time, Silbermann said.

Harper Woods police are being used as security for the area during filming.

“The movie crews and studios are reimbursing,” Deputy Police Chief James Burke said of the cost of the time involved.

He said the school district was also getting money as a result of part of the work going on in the city by the film crews.