Kevin Costner, Morgan Freeman in Romania to shoot historical drama miniseries

Kevin Costner and Morgan Freeman are in Romania to film 'The Gray House,' a historical drama about three women who founded the first American espionage network.

Filming began this spring and takes place entirely in Romania at Castel Film. It is produced by Kevin Costner's company, Territory Pictures, and Morgan Freeman's Revelations Entertainment, together with Big Dreams Entertainment.

The filming is expected to last until August of this year. The miniseries will be available next year and will consist of 6 episodes, according to Urban.ro, cited by art and cinematography blogger Ruxandra Serban.

“'The Gray House' is an untold true story about three incredibly courageous abolitionist heroes from the Civil War era who happened to be women. With a passion for history, it is always a personal satisfaction to share rich stories about America's unsung heroes. I am excited to join forces with my friends Leslie Greif and Morgan Freeman to produce this important epic saga," said Kevin Costner when the project was announced.

The Romanian production company Castel Film is highly important for Eastern Europe and internationally acclaimed for achievements such as 'Cold Mountain' (2003), 'Borat' (2006), 'Hatfields & McCoys' (2012), 'The Nun' (2018), and 'Around the World in 80 Days' (2021). The latest film production shot here is the series 'Wednesday' directed by Tim Burton, a reimagining of the Addams Family story.

Nevertheless, Romania is not yet a major destination for international film producers, as it does not offer fiscal incentives matching those offered by other European countries. Back in 2018, the authorities implemented a system offering a cash rebate to producers, but it did not maintain it in the following years.

This May, however, Romanian minister of culture Lucian Romaşcanu announced that the government had taken "an initial legislative step" to restart the cash rebate state aid scheme for the film industry.

Films and series produced in Romania include 'Voyagers' (Lionsgate), 'Washington' (History Channel), 'Impulse' ep 204 (NBC), 'Violence of Action' (Thunder Road), 'Dragonheart Vengeance' (Universal), 'A Christmas Prince: The Royal Baby' (Netflix), 'Christmas in Rome' (Hallmark), 'La Vita Promessa 2' (Rai), 'Doorman' (Double Dutch), 'Dampyr' (Eagle Pictures), 'Alex Rider' (Sony Pictures), 'Parquet' (Reason 8 Films), 'Killing Eve' (BBC America), 'The Asset' (Millennium Films), and 'Cold Mountain' (written and directed by Anthony Minghella).