- Hollywood actor Brad Pitt stayed at Parihoa Estate while filming action thriller Heart of the Beast in Auckland.
- The estate, owned by Matt Chapman, is on the market and known for hosting the Great Kiwi Bake Off.
- High-profile celebrities often use luxury rental agencies for accommodation during filming in NZ.
Oscar-winning actor Brad Pitt rented a multi-million-dollar West Auckland estate that once hosted the Great Kiwi Bake Off, OneRoof can reveal.
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The Hollywood star stayed at Parihoa Estate, in Muriwai, while filming his new blockbuster movie, Heart of the Beast, in New Zealand.
Multiple sources confirmed to OneRoof that Pitt had rented the coastal retreat during the Auckland shoot earlier this year.
The property is owned by multi-millionaire wellness guru Matt Chapman and is currently on the market for sale.
The luxury house on Parihoa Estate, Constable Road, Muriwai, was home to Hollywood star Brad Pitt when he was filming Heart of the Beast in Auckland. Photo / Supplied
The house, designed by architect Andrew Patterson, is perched on the cliffs above Muriwai and Te Henga Bethells. Photo / Supplied
OneRoof reached out to Chapman and Bayleys listing agent John Greenwood about Pitt's stay. Both declined to comment.
Pitt made headlines last month when the mother of a young McDonald's worker in Kumeū shared a video of her daughter's encounter with the star at the drive-thru.
“Just say hello to my Dad?” the girl asks Pitt. Pitt, who was initially caught off guard, says: “Hi Dad ... Happy Easter.”
Parihoa Estate, where Pitt was staying, is a near-295ha property on Auckland’s west coast between Muriwai and Te Henga Bethells.
A young Kiwi has a surprise encounter with Brad Pitt while at a McDonald’s drive-thru in West Auckland. Photo / Supplied
Chapman has described the estate as the “ultimate well-being sanctuary”. It includes a stunning Andrew Patterson-designed home, and, according to Chapman, "juxtaposes one of the most picturesque rural landscapes and combines it with incredible architecture".
Chapman bought it in 2013 for $6.25m but is selling up after shifting his focus to Queenstown.
The estate is recognisable as the setting for the Great Kiwi Bakeoff. It has also hosted several celebrity weddings, including the ceremony for Hits host Matty Mclean and his agent husband Ryan Teece.
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Chapman earlier told OneRoof that when he bought the property, he "didn't have a cent left" to his name. "Bit by bit, I started furnishing the place I got my first couch, I could barely [afford] the animals, I couldn't buy any furniture,” he said.
“So the journey of me with this property was very much like the journey of me as I built my life.”
Greenwood told OneRoof that Parihoa Estate was being marketed to international buyers. “We are telling people that this is a tourism investment, and that the Government supports investment in accommodation and hospitality."
The Westmere home that action star Jason Statham rented while filming in Auckland. It recently sold for $28m. Photo / Supplied
The Matakana estate that UK TV legend Noel Edmonds bought in 2021. Photo / Supplied
He added: “It’s a powerful design, just like the environment it sits in. People who walk in for the first time, they gasp – the proximity to the powerful Tasman Sea pounding in.”
Greenwood said that Patterson’s architecture has pulled in high-end global brands such as Apple, Rolls Royce and Land Rover for launches and filming, but the house could also be purchased on its own as a lifestyle block.
Pitt isn't the only high-profile celebrity with ties to Auckland real estate. Action star Jason Statham stayed at a waterfront mansion on Rawene Avenue, in Westmere, while he was filming the shark thriller The Meg in New Zealand. The home recently sold for $28m.
British TV legend Noel Edmonds owns a country estate in Matakana, which he bought in 2021 for $6.1m. The star tried to sell it a year later but pulled it from the market.
Other stars who have filmed blockbusters in Auckland in recent years include Jason Momoa and Jack Black, for A Minecraft Movie, and Jenna Ortega, for a project with Taika Waititi.
Jason Momoa signs autographs for fans at the Armageddon convention in Auckland while he was filming A Minecraft Movie. Photo / Supplied
Many of the celebrities working in the city reach out to rental agency Goodwins Real Estate to find short-term accommodation.
Brendan Goodwin, sales lead for the company, said that much of the business was driven by word of mouth. The company’s foray into the exclusive world started with the America’s Cup challenge in 2021. It found tenancies for over 130 staff and crew, with rentals costing up to $30,000 a week.
“Then Amazon were coming over to do Lord of the Rings. When the first directors came over, I drove them around in a minivan looking at properties,” he said, adding that while housing for the stars might top $35,000 a week there are also “normal people" spending $1000 a week.
Goodwin, who works with Warner Brothers and Netflix, said: "I’m currently negotiating an off-market short-term rental for $40,000 a week for a family for four weeks. I’ll call a homeowner and say, ‘Hey, I’ve got an opportunity for this period of time.'
“It’s all very private. If you Googled it, it wouldn’t come up. These owners have multiple homes. They might have one on Waiheke, one in Queenstown, one overseas, so they might go to one of those while they rent out their main home.”
Goodwin said that many of the houses on the agency's books were worth $15m to $20m and very secure and private. His clients typically had a nanny or a personal chef. "For a lot of this, I work with luxury travel operators like Jacqui at a Touch of Spice, who work out what they need and layer the experiences on top of the accommodation.”
High-agent Anthony Morsinkhof, of Forbes Global Properties, told OneRoof that celebrities often tap into networks of exclusive private properties when visiting New Zealand. “Some of these places are asking $60,000 a month,” he said.
Morsinkhof, who represents the members-only global luxury home exchanges Third Home and the Falcons Club, said celebrities who reach out to him were "global names" in business and entertainment.
They would be looking for extreme luxury, he said, citing as an example the Canterbury high country station he is selling, which has hosted Middle Eastern sheiks, rock stars and tech entrepreneurs.
“It’s in the middle of nowhere, absolute seclusion. There are three landing pads for helicopters or propellor planes – it can’t take private jets – and giant land cruisers to cross the Rakaia River."
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