According to the Irish Times, after the success of “Normal People” (Lenny Abrahamson and Hettie Macdonald, 2022), there was an 11 per cent increase in applicants to Trinity. Thousands of tourists flock to our campus to see its famous filming locations and most Trinity students are familiar with hearing “from ‘Normal People’?” when they reveal what college they go to. Despite the popularity of the show, Trinity has been host to many other films and TV shows that have received less attention. The Old Library and Long Room in particular have been featured in films from all over the world, even if they are not specifically set in Ireland or at Trinity. Here is a comprehensive list of some films and TV shows that you might not realize were filmed at our beautiful campus.
The Pope’s Exorcist (Julius Avery, 2023)
Starting with the most obvious, Russel Crowe was spotted multiple times at Trinity College Dublin filming “The Pope’s Exorcist.” The film used multiple Irish locations for filming, along with the Old Library and some older-looking archival buildings at Trinity. The library was shown as a double for the Vatican Archives in which Crowe’s character is seen researching demons. The film led to some funny headlines and paparazzi pictures featuring Crowe smoking a cigarette on the Trinity campus in black priest’s robes.
Transformers the Last Knight (Michael Bay, 2017)
In this addition to the Transformers series, the Trinity College Library is mentioned by name when a character is sent to retrieve a book from its archives. The film features and was filmed in the Long Room, but incorrectly places Trinity College in London, leading to many fans pointing out the geographical error.
Ek Tha Tiger (Kabir Khan, 2012)
“Ek Tha Tiger” was the first ever Bollywood film to shoot in Ireland and prominently features Trinity as the film is about a scientist working at Trinity College. It is a fun watch for those who know the campus well as it does not just focus on the more well-known and recognizable aspects of our school, but also the everyday locations.
Wednesday Season 2 (Tim Burton, 2025)
“Wednesday” Season 2 features the Trinity Business Building, but completely transformed into the New Jersey Newark Airport. It also features the GMB for interior shots. The show moved its filming location from Romania to Ireland due to budgetary reasons and is said to be filming Season 3 in Ireland as well!
Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (George Lucas, 2002)
This is a controversial one, seeing as the film never actually shot on campus. A scene featuring the Jedi Archives was noticed by viewers as having significant similarities to the Trinity Long Room despite the fact that permission to use and film in the space was never granted. Trinity even sought legal action, however all claims of the likeness of the space were denied and eventually dropped. The Jedi Archives featured in subsequent films with the same similarities to the Long Room, but was not met with more outrage.
