Jessie Buckley, Star Wars, Charlie Chaplin... Eight Kerry connections to Hollywood and the silver screen
Kerry connections: Charlie Chaplin was a frequent visitor to Waterville; Jessie Buckley hails from Killarney; Skellig Michael featured in two Star Wars films.
For a county better known for fishermen and the occasional All-Ireland success, Kerry has quietly built a fairly impressive CV in the world of cinema.
Between Oscar-nominated actors, visiting legends of the Silent Era and blockbuster franchises that have turned remote rocks into global tourist hotspots, the Kingdom has had more brushes with Hollywood than you might expect. Here are eight times Kerry and the silver screen crossed paths.
Silent film icon Charlie Chaplin first visited Waterville in 1959 and fell head over heels in love with the beautiful seaside village.
In fact, he liked it so much that he kept coming back, often spending Easter there with his family. Chaplin reportedly said he “loved the feeling of the bracing Atlantic breezes and that the air was worth £1,000 a breath.”
The village suited him perfectly; scenic, quiet and crucially far away from the gaze of Hollywood. Locals got used to the sight of the world’s most recognisable film star strolling around town or enjoying the view of Ballinskelligs Bay.
These days the village leans happily into their connection to the star with a statue in his memory and the annual Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival.
If Chaplin represents Kerry’s link to cinema history, Jessie Buckley represents its future.
Raised near Killarney, Buckley’s path to international stardom began in far humbler surroundings. Like many young performers in the county, she cut her teeth with the Killarney Musical Society.
Buckley has often spoken about how seeing their production of as a child lit the spark for her career and created a superstar of its own.
Fast forward a few years and she’s one of Ireland’s most acclaimed actors, earning widespread praise for roles across film, television and theatre, including her recent turn in Hamnet which will surely win her a first Academy Award.
Another global star with strong Kerry roots. Although born in Germany, Fassbender moved to Killarney at the age of two. He attended St Brendan’s College where, like many teenagers before and after him, he probably had no idea Hollywood was waiting around the corner.
His first taste of acting came in a school play at 17. Things escalated quickly from there for the star. Fassbender went on to deliver memorable performances in films such as and while blockbuster audiences know him best as Magneto in the series.
If Kerry actors have held their own on screen, so too has the scenery. Few films showcased the county’s beauty quite like Directed by legendary filmmaker David Lean, the epic was shot around Dingle and along the spectacular stretches of sand at Inch and Coumeenoole Beach.
The windswept coastline provided the perfect dramatic backdrop. It also introduced global audiences to the Dingle Peninsula long before Instagram or TikTok existed.
Reviews were mixed when the film first arrived, but the scope and visuals were widely praised - and the tourism boost that followed certainly didn’t hurt.
Few Irish films are as instantly recognisable as Directed by Jim Sheridan and based on the play by John B Keane, the film was shot in Galway but set in Kerry, and reportedly inspired by real events surrounding the murder of Moss Moore over land dispute in Reamore.
The 1990 film features an iconic performance from Richard Harris as the stubborn Bull McCabe, a man determined to hold onto the field he has spent his life cultivating, by any means necessary. Farmers and their land, a devotion like no other.
Who could forget the time Kerry wandered into one of the biggest film franchises on the planet? The closing scene of revealed the ancient monastery on Skellig Michael as the hiding place of Luke Skywalker.
The island returned in its sequel, instantly transforming a remote rock off the Kerry coast into one of the most recognisable film locations in the galaxy. Tourism surged afterwards, proving that sometimes all it takes is a Jedi and a few dramatic stone steps to put a place firmly on the map.
Kerry’s dramatic landscapes have long tempted filmmakers in search of something suitably epic. One standout example is Excalibur, the Arthurian legend brought to the screen by director John Boorman.
The county’s misty lakes, sweeping coasts and forests - particularly around Derrynane and Inch Strand - helped create a suitably mythical atmosphere.
Kerry also played host to starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. The film is remembered for sweeping landscapes and unsubtle emotions, but primarily for one of the worst Irish accents ever attempted on screen. We’re looking at you Tom!
Finally, Kerry proved it can also accommodate films that are a little unusual. The surreal comedy-drama directed by Yorgos Lanthimos, starring Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz, used the famous Kingdom landscapes as well as the Parknasilla Hotel in Sneem to create its strange dystopian world.
The premise? Single people must find love within 45 days or be turned into animals. I’d argue it’s still probably less stressful than trying to get a table in Killarney on a bank holiday weekend.
