J.J. Abrams is currently filming Star Wars: Episode VII in Abu Dhabi, but will soon be packing up his new X-Wing and taking the film to Ireland. According to the Office of Public Works, filming will commence off the coast of County Kerry. They’ll be filming around Skellig Michael, an island in the Atlantic Ocean 11.6 km west of County Kerry’s Iveragh Peninsula.
Apart from the typical beautiful scenery Ireland has to offer, Skellig Michael is unique because it’s home to some ancient Christian Monastic ruins, which could fit in well as some dwellings on some alien world in the film. This also marks another great example of how Abrams is going back to Star Wars‘ roots and shooting on location instead of in front of a green screen. We may not know anything about the film’s plot yet, but we do know that the backgrounds and locations are going to look great.
We’re not quite sure when filming will commence, or what is going to be shot there, so stay tuned for more details. I’ve included a few images of Skellig Michael below, so you can see the great location for yourself.
Star Wars: Episode VII is set for release on December 18th 2015, with returning stars Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Kenny Baker (R2-D2) and Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca) joined by Adam Driver (Girls), Oscar Isaac (Inside Llewyn Davis), Andy Serkis (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes), Domhnall Gleeson (Dredd), John Boyega (Attack the Block), Daisy Ridley (Silent Witness), Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones), Lupita Nyong’o (12 Years a Slave), Max von Sydow (The Exorcist), Christina Chong (24: Live Another Day) and newcomers Crystal Clarke and Pip Andersen.
Originally published July 24, 2014. Updated January 18, 2020.
