Ireland is back in the international cinema spotlight. Bucking Fastard, Werner Herzog’s new feature film, has just been unveiled at the Venice Film Festival, following a shoot that took the crew to several Irish locations. Dublin, Naas and Sligo provided the backdrop for this production starring Rooney Mara, Kate Mara, Orlando Bloom and Irish actor Domhnall Gleeson.
Werner Herzog’s new film shot in Ireland
From Dublin to Sligo, several Irish locations on screen
Presented in competition at the 83rd Venice Film Festival on 3 September 2026, Bucking Fastard is a 109-minute Irish-American co-production. The film marks Werner Herzog’s return to fiction and has a particularly strong connection with Ireland: a significant part of the shoot took place there in 2025.
Two Dublin locations have already been identified: Capel Street, one of the liveliest streets in the city centre, and the Pigeon House area in the Docklands. Filming also took place in Naas, County Kildare. RTÉ also reported, when filming wrapped, that the crew had been in Sligo, on the west coast.
This choice of locations gives the film an Irish identity that extends well beyond its production setting. The Irish Times critic notably highlights the highly visible presence of Pigeon House and Capel Street in the feature.
What is Bucking Fastard about?
Two sisters who speak and live almost as one person
Rooney Mara and Kate Mara play Jean and Joan Holbrooke, two sisters whose intensely close relationship defies convention. They speak in unison, share the same dreams and love the same man, Gareth, played by Orlando Bloom.
The screenplay is loosely inspired by the story of Freda and Greta Chaplin, British twins who drew press attention in the early 1980s, notably for their unsettling way of speaking and moving in synchrony.
Werner Herzog, however, turns this real-life material into a far stranger, more dreamlike work. The two protagonists embark on an improbable undertaking: digging through rock in the hope of reaching an imaginary territory where true love might still be possible. Herzog thus embraces a narrative governed more by dream logic than traditional realism.
Rooney and Kate Mara together on screen for the first time
A performance built on their real-life bond
Bucking Fastard has another distinction: it is the first film in which Rooney Mara and Kate Mara appear together. Their genuine family connection even becomes one of the project’s driving forces.
Much of their performance rests on their ability to deliver lines simultaneously and coordinate their movements. In Venice to present the film, the two actresses explained that they drew on their real-life closeness to create this unusual on-screen relationship. Herzog had initially planned a longer rehearsal period before finding that their synchronisation worked far more quickly than expected.
The cast also includes Orlando Bloom and Domhnall Gleeson, alongside Irish actors Simon Delaney and Hugh O’Conor.
Capel Street and Pigeon House turned into film locations
Two very different sides of Dublin
For travellers, the film holds an added appeal: several of its locations can easily be explored during a stay in Dublin.
Capel Street runs through the centre of the capital, north of the Liffey. Long better known to Dubliners than visitors, it has changed profoundly in recent years and is now one of the city’s liveliest streets, with its restaurants, shops and characteristically Dublin façades.
The Pigeon House area offers an entirely different atmosphere. Located in the port district of Poolbeg, it forms part of an industrial landscape made especially recognisable by the famous Poolbeg chimneys. This rawer setting is well suited to Werner Herzog’s distinctive visual world.
Further west, County Sligo brings yet another, much wilder face of Ireland. The film therefore combines urban spaces, industrial landscapes and natural settings within a deliberately contrasting Irish geography.
Ireland confirms its importance in international cinema
A shoot that joins a long line of international productions
The arrival of a director such as Werner Herzog is part of a well-established trend. Thanks to its landscapes, cities and audiovisual industry, Ireland regularly hosts major international productions.
In the case of Bucking Fastard, this dimension is particularly apparent: the Venice Biennale officially identifies the film as an Ireland–United States production, while Irish producer Kieran Corrigan is among the people behind the project.
Following its Venice presentation, the film is therefore likely to draw fresh attention to some of its filming locations. However, no commercial release date has yet been announced. It is therefore best to be wary of prematurely circulated schedules: as of 11 September 2026, no official release date in France or Ireland has been confirmed.
Bucking Fastard: what we know
Essential information about the film
- Title: Bucking Fastard
- Director and screenwriter: Werner Herzog
- Starring: Kate Mara, Rooney Mara, Orlando Bloom and Domhnall Gleeson
- Countries: Ireland and the United States
- Running time: 109 minutes
- Known Irish filming locations: Dublin, Naas and Sligo
- Identified Dublin locations: Capel Street and Pigeon House
- Premiere: Venice Film Festival 2026, in competition
- Release date: not yet announced
From Capel Street to the landscapes of Sligo, Ireland features in one of Werner Herzog’s most distinctive films.
