The 2024 horror movieThe Watchersis set in Ireland, but its beautiful settings and deep, dark forests have led people to wonder where it was actually filmed.The Watchers, now streaming on Max, wasthe directorial debut of M. Night Shyamalan’s daughter, Ishana Shyamalan. It follows Dakota Fanning’s lead character, Mina. Mina is an American artist living in Galway, Ireland. When she’s driving through a remote, forested part of Ireland, her car breaks down and she finds herself trapped in a cabin with three other people while malevolent creatures outside threaten to kill them.
Like all of the best dark fairytales and folklore movies,The Watchers, based on the book by A.M. Shine,makes liberal use of a forest setting. While some city locations were used, as well as soundstages,the film shoot benefited from the natural beauty of Ireland’s ancient forests.While not a lot of information is available about where exact scenes were shot, a little bit of digging does uncover info about where in Ireland certain scenes inThe Watcherstook place.
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Dublin
Used For Early City Scenes In The Movie
Dublin, the capital city of the Republic of Ireland, is a beautiful city on the East Coast of the country. As such, it wasused for the movie’s Act I scenes where Mina is living her life in the city, not yet having traveled to the forested, more remote areas of Ireland. The movie features Dublin’s historic buildings and old sites full of parks and marketplaces and cultural markers to help establish the setting.
It’s a cosmopolitan city, but with Dublin’s ancient history dating back to the time it was known as Dubh Linn, it hints at the wilder, more primal parts of Ireland Mina has yet to encounter. The city is no doubt beautiful and vibrant,but it’s exactly that beauty that lulls the viewer (and Mina) into a false sense of security, setting up the rest of the movie once her nightmare begins.
Galway
Various City Scenes & Some Landscape Forest Locations
The Galway region was the second shooting area ofThe Watchers, and the locations used were to supplement the city scenes shot in Dublin.Galway’s famous Kirwan’s Lane, Quay Street, and Cross Street areas were all used for various city exterior shots, and a few interior ones, as well. The scene where Mina gets into her Jeep and drives off for her assignment to the forest was shot in front of the Electric Nightclub on Abbeygate Street Upper. A closed building that formerly housed a business known as Griffin’s Bakery on Shop Street was painted green and repurposed to become the pet shop where Mina gets the parrot. (viaGalway Beo)
Galway also did double duty thanks to its picturesque landscape, as well. Galway is known for its wild, rugged coastline,including the famous Cliffs of Moher and Connemara.Thus, the gorgeous natural scenery of Galway was used in a few external shots. The same goes for its wooded parks and forested areas, which were used for some of the forest scenes inThe Watchers.
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Wicklow
Most Of The Scary Forest Scenes Were Shot Here
The majority of the creepy forest scenes were shot in Wicklow, Ireland.Wicklow is known for its primeval, moss-laden foreststhat immediately conjure up images of monstrous creatures and malevolent faeries; Ballinastoe Forest, in particular, has an ancient, magical feel that has made it a popular shooting location. As such, Wicklow’s lush forests were the perfect location to shoot the scenes where Mina and the others were trapped in the unforgiving, dark forest. Additional scenes inThe Watcherswere also filmed on a soundstage in Bray, Wicklow at Ardmore Studios.
The Watchers
Based on A.M. Shine’s novel, The Watchers follows Mina, a twenty-eight-year-old artist stranded in the middle of a forest in Ireland. Her momentary relief when she finds shelter is shattered when she discovers other strangers in the same predicament - but they’re stalked each night by unseen creatures.
