In a statement on Sibenik.in, the Dubrovnik Diocese has clarified its stance on Game of Thrones‘ troublesome relationship with Dubrovnik Cathedral.
They have stated that they only disallowed filming of the interior of the cathedral/walking out of it, and that they did not and can not prohibit filming in the immediate surrounding area.
UPDATE: Entertainment Weekly has since confirmed that this is “old news”, and that the producers have secured a new location for the sequence.
Mild spoilers below the cut.
More information has also come to light regarding filming problems in Croatia, this time at the Cathedral of St. James in Šibenik.
According to Sibenik.in, the cathedral will not be used for filming, as the bishop in question heard that the show is rich in content that he does not like.
The production reportedly hoped to capture a short frame of a wedding at the location, as numerous actors walked through the side-door flanked by lion statues (see image above). Also mentioned is that they plan to film at a “few” fortress locations, rather than solely at St. John’s.
On a more positive note, Dornish cast members Rosabell Laurenti Sellers, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Toby Sebastian and DeObia Oparei have gathered together to prepare for filming scenes in Croatia.
Finally, images of some sort of homestead set at Cushendall, Northern Ireland have surfaced on Reddit.
Redditor warwagon86 says that there was also a raised platform to the left of the houses that looked like “where a queen and king would sit”, and also confirms that filming is taking place at Garron Tower nearby.
Cian: The raised platform at Cushendall sounds interesting, although given the appearance of the rest of the set, it would be strange for a king and queen to be seated there. Also, the presence of an anvil there may have something to do with the recent casting calls for blacksmiths/stonemasons. Thanks to Dakario for tipping us off!
Arianne
Mother of Dragons!
The clarification of it only being in the church and directly in front of it certainly makes me feel much better about where that scene could go. There are a few artistic ways they could portray it and still have its full effect I feel. Thanks for the update!
The priest heard it contains scenes he doesn’t like? I guess, too many naked women and not enough naked boys…
They’ll probably get shit like this from all the churches in Croatia.
Really hate churches and religion. So the walk can take place but not the start or end of it. Not that big an issue. Frustrating none the less.
That scene will be fine. They’ll get it done, Lena will rock it out, it’ll be awesome.
And jeez, the guy playing Areo is a big man (or rather, the Sand Snakes are pretty small). But yay for them filming!! So exciting. Especially for them – mostly very young actors who have very little notable work and then BOOM, it’s Game of Thrones. I’m sure Jonathan Pryce is excited too, but we’re talking about a two-time Tony winner here (has any other GoT cast member picked up a Tony?), so it’s not like this is his first rodeo. But for these people, I mean, wow, holy moly.
I’m guessing the wedding they were planning on filming in Sibenik is Tommen and Margaery’s wedding. and damn it really seems like they’re putting a lot of emphasis on Dorne with filming in 3 countries: Ireland, Spain and Croatia.
That’s a hefty dose of news. So looks like
On the Sibenik Cathedral, I have to say that’s just stupid. Yes, GOT has some controversial content, but it also helped Croatia a lot. The thing in Dubrovnik was understandable given that the scene in question was a controversial one, but just filming a shot for a wedding should be a problem at all.
Speaking of the wedding, I think there are only a couple of possibilities:
On the whole king/queen platform, I just have no idea. Same with Garron Tower. Any clue where the Dornish are filming?
Dutch maester,
Can’t blame them for not wanting a naked actress prancing around their church for (most likely) a couple of days of shooting. After this clarification, I completely understand them. That cathedral thing on the other hand is complete bullshit.
OMG first photos of the sand snakes and the dornish members together !! so excited to see them in set
do you think my king and queen seated there they mean
Greatjon of Slumber,
Diana Rigg.
nym sand,
I don’t think so. Also, where is Jessica Henwick in that pic? Was she taking the photo, maybe?
Why are my posts not appearing ? For some reason when i try to reply to someone it does not appear yet when i don’t they do,weird .
I mentioned on another site that the walk would go ahead and just green screen an exit from the church. Seems as though that’s the way their going. It’s a little strange that they’re not wanting a wedding filmed in the church, I can understand the walk of shame but I guess everyone’s entitled to their beliefs/opinions.
I really wish i was half as interested in Dorne on the show as I was in the books but their seems like theirs so many changes, I just can’t get excited.
The walk will be fine. When Francis Coppola was shooting Godfather III, the Vatican wouldn’t allow him to shoot a car entering the Holy See, so he put up a fake gate in front of the real one, and shot a car going through that instead. They’ll find a way.
Greatjon of Slumber,
Stephen Dillane
Mark Gatiss to return: http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/08/27/mark-gatiss-season-5-thrones/
They better make Areoh more interesting than he is in the books. He looks huge, so I’ll hope he’ll kick some major ass.
Don’t know if this has been reported or not:
Mark Gatiss (Tycho Nestoris) is back
http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/08/27/mark-gatiss-season-5-thrones/
Is anyone else thinking that the homestead and anvil, along with the blacksmith casting call from earlier, might be a way for Gendry to return as someone else’s apprentice. I need to know that his first attempt at rowing didn’t result in him drowning on the show.
Also from the EW article, the problem with the church is old news and they found a new location to use a while ago.
Where are Hibberd’s new casting exclusives???
Bliss,
I need to know what happened to Gendry! Seconded!
Carne,
Morgan,
Sometimes Hibberd irks me but I’m glad he’s rectified this locations trouble business. TMZ really are scumbags and its good to know that their scoop is outdated.
Morgan,
Good news, not that I expected anything else
Greenjones,
And of course they said “the producers haven’t found a workaround yet” which is apparently complete bullshit. That’s just low.
He is still on the boat, and has by now reached America.
I’m thinking the place with the anvil could be
Just to cite a croatian journalist concerning Sibenik bishop: Content of GOT (ASOIAF) did not bring anything new that has not been written in the Bible.
Amen.
The_Rabbit01,
Did the tiger survive the trip too? Or am I getting it mixed up with Life of Pi again?
So everything is ok now? They can film outside around the area?
Just representing New Zealand here, Keisha Castle-Hughes was nominated for a best actress Oscar, did’nt win but still 🙂
Jack Bauer 24,
According to an EW article, they found another location for it long ago.
jentario,
Yes, and that needs to have its own news article on this site, clearing up all the silly rumors. TMZ really shouldn’t be considered a source.
Mark Gatiss returning is also very noteworthy! Love him as a writer and actor, and really liked him as Tycho. His scene with Stannis and Davos was awesome (“You feel your blood gives you a claim on our gold?”.) Hopefully he is a recurring character this time.
Tried to post a response to Jack twice but the comment hasn’t appeared.
Sansa is taking FArya’s place, she will interact with Ramsay and Roose Bolton. Not be a prisoner of them though, Littlefinger will give her winterfell like he said.
No, she won’t. That’s completely absurd on many levels.
Annara Snow,
Such as…
(I’m interested in hearing your opinion, but c’mon, let’s at least get some support for the claim)
Annara Snow you’re here too lol
They’re simply moving forward with Sansa’s storyline in the books which is already heading this direction. The only real chapter left for Sansa is the one where littlefinger promises Sansa Winterfell. They wont stretch that for a whole season.
This is why we haven’t see a Farya casting with filming already happening in north storylines, and why Sansa was hanging out with Micheal Elhatton and Alfie Allen. See the pictures where the new Dorne cast is hanging out? They are filming together thats why…theyre becoming friends.
Sophie Turner is doing the same thing with her new cast members. Calling it now lol
Greatjon of Slumber,
Owen Teale (Alliser Thorne) also has won a Tony!
LordLannister,
I’d like them to include the Gendry saving Brienne scene (perhaps some Tarly men/knights who taunted Brienne when she was a girl replacing Rorge and Biter?) . Good old Gendry deserves his moment of heroism! Maybe he’ll join Brienne and Pod and take on a Hyle Hunt kind of role, although I think it’s perfectly acceptable for that role to be cut altogether.
Sansa’s storyline in the books is heading in the direction of being pals with the Boltons? LMAO
Yes, that’s also why Aidan Gillen has been hanging out with Conleth Hill and Michael McElhatton. Obviously, Littlefinger, Roose and Varys (straight from Essos) are going to have lots of fun times together. Eating ice-cream. 🙂
And it’s also why Kit Harington has been hanging out with Alfie and Iwan. Calling it now! Jon is taking the place of fArya! This is the show speeding up his storyline – Stannis already promised him Winterfell in the books; next stop – Jon marries Ramsay!
I’d love for your speculation about
and Brienne’s very necessary character development to be correct.
Perfectly resaonable explanations. Kit Harrington already hung out with Alfie in season 1 so they can be friends now. Same with Colenth hill and Aidan Gillen, they had 3 seasons of being together. Also Colenth Hill and Micheal Elhatton have known eachother for quite some time before GOT.
Kyrion,
Sophie filmed with Alfie in season 1 just as much as Kit did and has been to many award shows with him. You’re assuming a lot of ridiculous stuff based on one thing.
But on the other hand, we must come with crackpots that make no sense at all to explain the incredible, incredible idea of some other GoT cast members hanging out together between breaks while shooting in Belfast…
How could they ever? Obviously, it must be that Sansa is friends/allies/bride of the Boltons! Makes perfect sense, about as much as Jon becoming Ramsay’s BFF.
Next: Kit Harington seen in the ice-bucket challenge with Lena and Nikolaj; breaking news: shocking GoT season 5 development – Jon Snow marries Cersei and starts having three-ways with her an Jaime!
Lion of Night,
I’m not Annara, but a brief list would be:
1. Sansa is already married, and cannot marry anyone.
2. Sansa is a fugitive from the Iron Throne, and so cannot marry an ally of the Iron Throne, i.e., the Boltons.
3. It makes no sense for Sansa to ally with the Boltons, seeing as they murdered her family.
4. It makes no sense for the Boltons to want to ally with Sansa and Littlefinger, seeing as they murdered Sansa’s family and would not trust her; nor would they trust him, seeing as they would know that he killed Joffrey based on his having Sansa in his company.
5. This suggested substitution either reduces Sansa to a quivering prisoner like Jeyne, completely reversing the point of her story last season, or it makes Sansa the driving force in Theon’s arc, which totally screws Theon’s characterization.
6. This substitution completely throws away Sansa’s own story arc (whatever that is).
How dare the church not allow us to use their own property for filming something they don’t approve of!
Please tell me the countryside thrones are for the Greyjoys, I wouldn’t mind it being for Randyl Tarly’ s ego either though
Does the “church” really think that people/spirits are clothed in “heaven”?
Naked shame is a “human” insecurity thing not a “God” thing. Ugh.
I love how works of fiction (“Da Vinci Code“, “Satanic Verses“, etc….) make “religions” squirm.
Hodor’s Bastard,
To be fair, the Da Vinci Code should make everyone with a brain squirm. It’s an aggresively stupid insult to books everywhere.
Could the platform/anvil set be something to do with
All this, plus 7. Littlefinger would never turn his super valuable political card (and Cat 2.0/quasi-daughter-lover fantasy) Sansa over to Roose Bolton, or anyone else he wasn’t able to completely control. He would use her to get more power, not to give others more power.
I hadn’t noticed the post with the question, so thanks for saving me the time to answer. It’s odd that all this even needs explaining.
Veltigar,
“And it came to pass that all the women gathered together in the town center and requested the men to leave. After the men had left, the women decided that they would make moon tea available, without judgment, to those who wanted it.”
–the Gospel of Mary 2:14
Plus, Dan Brown actively marketed it as a work of non-fiction. I remember when everyone was obsessed with it — half the people I met thought it was true.
A church has a right to refuse filming on their property. There’s nothing wrong with it and it’s not a big deal. It was never as big as TMZ implied (“They can’t shoot anywhere!”).
I must say, that is an entertaining crackpot. Well done.
Not going to happen though.
Alan,
Well, he did steal the idea from a non fiction book.
1. Sansa is marrying Harry the heir in the books. George already is doing this and you know it. :/
2. Littlefinger is revealing that he has Sansa and is giving her Winterfell as he says in her final chapter in AFFC. He is already planning this -_-.
3. Roose Bolton is not being blamed for the Red Wedding, we the viewers know he was at fault, but the North does not blame him. As far as they think, it the freys and the Lannisters. The only reason Roose is allied with the Freys in ADWD is because he married into the family (before the Red Wedding), he doesnt get any blame for the Red Wedding. This is widely known.
4. Already answered above, and the motivation would be EXACTLY what it is in getting Fake arya, which would be having a Stark in Winterfell. Someone the people can get behind. Besides, in the books Littlefinger gives Roose Bolton Jeyne Pool to Roose Bolton anyways, if the show does do this, it would be basically be similar with Littlefinger giving the Boltons some sort of Northern symbol. He will most definitely be scheming and the endgame isnt giving Sansa Winterfell and thats it.
5. Totally different scenario, as Sansa isnt a prisoner of the Boltons.
….pretty much killed that. Odd that I would need to explain things from the books.
My first thought seeing the “village” set was The Quiet Isle–buildings built on slopes, a blacksmith shop–though it isn’t an island. I suppose they could just pretend it was the island interior. Could be somewhere in The Vale also, as Jentario suggested.
Kyrion,
1. No, Littlefinger’s long-term plan that is highly unlikely to get that far involves Sansa marrying again. Not remotely the same thing.
2. Again, this is something Littlefinger plans to do in the future. It completely changes the story to do it now, and the Boltons would never be involved in that.
3. Are you serious? You would have to be a complete moron not to know that Bolton was a participant in the Red Wedding, seeing as his army (and only his army) survived it, and he was made the new Warden of the North. The lack of trust for Bolton in the books is pretty damn obvious.
4. I’m not sure how you think that rebuts that the Boltons would never ally with Sansa or Littlefinger in this manner. Fake Arya is a pawn that is wholly in their power, gifted by the Lannisters. Sansa and Littlefinger are independent actors who they would never trust.
5. Um, yes, it is a totally different scenario, and in no version of it does anything like Theon’s book arc happen. Either Sansa is the driving force, not Theon, or they just force Sansa into Jeyne’s part.
1. No, Littlefinger’s long-term plan that is highly unlikely to get that far involves Sansa marrying again. Not remotely the same thing.
2. Again, this is something Littlefinger plans to do in the future. It completely changes the story to do it now, and the Boltons would never be involved in that.
So now you’re resorting to calling Littlefingers plan basically stupid to support your idea of how things make sense? Ok, I guess Ill just say that, well have to wait and see what the show does. Good day.
I am glad you have finally set the story straight! As I mentioned in the comments of the original report, the TMZ article was a non-story, the municipality officials never had a problem with allowing the scene to be shot on the streets, the only problem was filming inside and/or in front of the church. So, as reported earlier, the filming of the scene is expected to take place inside the old city (just not inside the church). According to some reports, part of the itinerary for the procession will include Ul. Svetog Dominika from the archway to the bridge, but I have not been able to get a firm confirmation on this info.
On a different matter, I had reported yesterday that some GoT crew have scouted a Franciscan monastery near Pridvorje as a possible location for future seasons. Apparently, the big tree in front of the monastery (and the fact that it was recently renovated) played some role in considering the venue.
http://visit.cavtat-konavle.com/en/galleries
Also, the Mercy chapter from TWOW will be a part of season 6 and this was one of the reasons GRRM released it to the public. It is expected the GRRM will release one or more chapters that will be used in season 6 before the end of the year.
I know I know I know…
Patchface,
I thought the Mercy chapter was released because Arya’s kill of Polliver in 401 was based on something similar that happened in it.
Greenjones,
Indeed you are right, but I was referring to the general
not necessarily to the identity of the victim. There are plenty on the death list waiting to receive the gift of mercy…
I think the raised structure where “a king or queen might sit” could actually be the gallows where our favorite female warrior screams out one word!
Oooh I like that. Quite possible, indeed.
Euron,
May be YOUR favourite female warrior! 😛 I’d take Arya,Asha and Maege Mormont over her any day of the week!
Bah, these issues always arise during production. Do you guys think that this is the first movie or television series that has or will encounter these issues and obstacles. In the grand scheme of things, this is to be expected, and when we see the final product next year, nobody will have any inkling of there ever having been a problem…actually most of us will not even remember.
Besides that is the role of producers, to figure out a way out of or around issues such as these!
As for the Catholic Church, or any religious denomination or group, commenting about sexuality and nudity…I won’t even deign that with a comment or response, because they have no leg to stand on…none…at all…
More importantly, I cannot wait to see Alexander Siddig, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Jonathan Pryce and the rest of the new cast in their roles! I hope they have a great time filming!
PS Do my eyes deceive me…did Winter Phil comment here on the site?!?!? If so, hey Winter Phil how are you?!?!? Good to hear from you!!!!!
No, that’s not what I said. I said that intervening factors are likely to prevent the scheme Littlefinger outlines from getting that far.
An fascinating discussion is worth comment. I believe that you must write more on this subject, it won’t be a taboo topic but generally persons are not enough to speak on such topics. To the next. Cheers