Hollywood star Ewan McGregor turned heads as he filmed in Bolton town centre. The Star Wars icon, who shot to fame in 1996 as Mark Renton in the gritty comedy drama Trainspotting, is starring as Count Rostov in the Paramount and Showtime TV series A Gentleman in Moscow.
The 51-year-old actor, who played Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy and poet Christian in the musical film Moulin Rouge!, was seen walking through fake snow as Bolton was transformed for wintery scenes. Bolton Town Hall doubled as The Kremlin as the town became 1920s Russia.
The series will be released on Paramount+ internationally and Showtime in the US. Filming is taking place in front of the town hall and Le Mans Crescent.
READ MORE:
Ewan is understood to be a replacement for Sir Kenneth Branagh, who was first reported to be in the lead role initially. The star was joined by other actors, dressed in military attire as they filmed the scenes. He sported a thick moustache and was spotted snacking on an apple between takes.
The series is adapted from Amor Towles' acclaimed 2016 bestselling novel, which follows the plight of Count Alexander Rostov in the aftermath of the Russian Revolution. A Gentleman in Moscow follows Count Rostov after he is spared execution, but sent to the Hotel Metropol on house arrest.
Ewan will also serve as an executive producer on the series, which saw snow sprayed onto the Grade I-listed town hall building's steps as filming got underway. Victoria Square, outside Bolton Town Hall, has been fenced off with film crews, trucks and equipment pictured within the cordon.
Signs currently in place reveal roads will be closed to allow for filming until Thursday, March 2, with a section of Le Mans Crescent also sealed off. Filming on A Gentleman in Moscow comes as Bolton landmarks featured prominently in the final series of Sally Wainwright's BAFTA-winning Happy Valley, starring Sarah Lancashire as embattled cop Sergeant Catherine Cawood.
Locations included Amico Cafe on Corporation Street. It doubled as a cafe in Sheffield for the famous scene when Sarah's tough-talking character rumbled her sister Clare Cartwright for taking her grandson Ryan to prison to see his father, the murderer and sex offender Tommy Lee Royce, played by James Norton.
Scenes of Tommy's dramatic court escape in Leeds were filmed at the former Bolton Magistrates' Court on Le Mans Crescent and beside the former police station next door. Locations in Bolton have also been used in filming for the Sky comedy drama Brassic starring Michelle Keegan, Peaky Blinders, the BBC horror drama Red Rose, the ITV spy thriller The Ipcress File, starring Michael Caine, and Channel 4 hit series It's A Sin.
Ewan's character is spared immediate execution but is banished by a Soviet tribunal to an attic room in the opulent Hotel Metropol and threatened with death if he ever sets foot outside. The series will see decades of Russian history unfold outside the hotel doors, with the character building a new life and discovering the value of friendship, family and love.
Ewan said last year of the drama: "It's an amazing, wonderful story and I am very excited to get to play such a fabulous role." He recently reprised his role of Star Wars favourite Obi-Wan Kenobi after almost two decades for the self-titled Disney+ TV series, having starring in three Star Wars prequels from 1999 to 2005.
A Gentleman In Moscow will debut exclusively on Paramount+ in the UK in 2023. Council bosses said the continuing attraction of Bolton as a film and TV location brings money into the town and supports local business.
Bolton Council deputy leader, coun Hilary Fairclough, said of the latest filming: "We remain a popular film location, and this is just the latest big-budget production to take advantage of everything Bolton had to offer. This continued interest is a direct result of the council’s policy to attract more filming, and we have a well-earned reputation as one of the most film-friendly towns in the country.
"Film productions bring money into the town and help boost local businesses. Just as important is the opportunity to showcase the best of Bolton to a major audience."
READ MORE:
