A welcome return of the Jedis to the Kingdom of Kerry
THE Force must be strong in Kerry – as the makers of the new Star Wars film are to return to the Kingdom with their stellar cast to film scenes for the next movie.
Last year’s film, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, i ncluded scenes filmed on the Skelligs off the coast of Kerry.
Mark Hamill, who plays Luke Skywalker, and Daisy Ridley as new Jedi fighter Rey both appeared in the scenes on the monastic island of Skellig Michael.
Now there are reports of a return of the Jedis to the county as preparations are said to be underway to film part of the latest Star Wars in Dingle.
Disney’s Lucasfilm has reportedly selected Ceann Sibéal at the western tip of the Dingle Peninsula as a location for Star Wars VIII.
An image which emerged online yesterday shows a metal road that is being built on the side of the hill.
The 1.5km metal roadway is understood to be under construction to transport film gear and crew to the summit for filming.
Star Wars: Episode VIII is directed by Rian Johnson and will see the return of Dubliner Domhnall Gleeson to the screen alongside Hamill, Ridley, Carrie Fisher and John Boyega.
It is understood filming will take place over two weeks in May. RTÉ reported yesterday that local landowners have entered i nto access agreements with the film company and that a number of hotels have already been booked for the filming period in question.
The Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht said it had approved a proposal for a limited amount of filming by a film company on Ceann Sibéal/Sybil Head on the Dingle Peninsula later this year.
Disney Lucasfilm filmed twice on Skellig Michael over the past two years.
The World Heritage Site features prominently towards the end of The Force Awakens, with the idyllic shots prompting fans to visit the famous islands.
Tight security measures were enforced on sea around Skellig Michael and on the mainland during filming.
Security personnel are already in place at Ceann Sibéal, preventing access to the headland, which is privately owned.
A spokesman for Heritage and Arts Minister Heather Humphreys said yesterday: ‘The particular location involved is privately owned and part of working agricultural land, within an SPA [Special Protection Area] and it is also used by walkers and tourists.’
The spokesman added that the department’s National Parks and Wildlife Service was satisfied that filming would not adversely affect the integrity of the area.
Ms Humphreys welcomed the planned filming.
Hotels already booked in area