Somerset County, historic Westmoreland inn to be featured in Netflix film starring Christian Bale

Dec. 2—LAUGHLINTOWN, Pa. — Somerset County's scenery and a historic Laughlintown inn will be featured in an upcoming Christian Bale thriller set inside the regimented 1830-era world of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

Based on a Louis Bayard novel of the same name, filming for "The Pale Blue Eye" is getting underway across western Pennsylvania, and within the story, the Westmoreland County-based Compass Inn is set to serve as an after-hours gathering place for officers and West Point residents, New York-based publicist Peter Silbermann confirmed.

The Netflix release stars Bale as a veteran New York detective investigating a series of West Point murders alongside a hard-drinking young military cadet who will one day become one of the period's most famous authors — Edgar Allen Poe.

Though the script's story is one of fiction, Poe spent a year at West Point before getting discharged. In the years that followed, he penned dark works such as "The Raven," "The Fall of the House of Usher" and early detective novels.

London-born actor Harry Melling, known for his role as Dudley Dursley in the Harry Potter series, will star as Poe.

Over the next few months, filming locations will include Somerset and Westmoreland county landscapes, Silbermann said.

"This is a really exciting project to come to our region," said Anna Weltz, public relations director for GO Laurel Highlands, which serves as the region's tourism bureau. "It's always wonderful to see the Laurel Highlands in the limelight and we're all eagerly awaiting a chance to see the final production on our Netflix screens at home."

Somerset and Westmoreland counties weren't selected by accident, Silbermann said.

The projects' filmmakers want to recapture West Point's Gothic-style look and the beauty of New York's Hudson Highlands in the 1830s — the dawn of the Industrial Age.

The scenic woodlands north and east of Pittsburgh were a perfect fit, Silbermann said, noting that the Slippery Rock area and Westminster College near New Castle were also chosen.

"The director (Scott Cooper) and producer did location scouting all across the northeast and Canada — and even visited West Point," Silbermann said. "But over the years, it's become a bit too Silicon Valley for the period they are trying to capture. Ultimately, it led them to the Pittsburgh area — and Christian (Bale), who is also the producer, knows the area. He's already done three films here."

Bale, known for his work in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, "American Psycho" and "Ford v Ferrari," last worked in Pittsburgh shooting the 2013 drama "Out of the Furnace."

No other cast members' names have been released, although a Pittsburgh agency lined up men earlier this fall for roles as paid extras, such as military school cadets and officers.

The wood-and-stone Compass Inn was recently restored.

It has occupied land alongside today's U.S. Route 30 since the late 1700s. For generations, it served as an inn and tavern for travelers along the Pittsburgh-to-Philadelphia turnpike.

A small crew of contractors was at the inn and museum space on Wednesday, building an addition to one of the property's log-built barns.

It's designed as a temporary structure for filming. Silbermann said steps were being taken to ensure the piece can be added on and then dismantled after filming wraps without changing the historic structure.

As many as 200 people — actors, cinematographers and other crew members — will be involved in the production throughout western Pennsylvania, he said.

Laughlintown resident Roger Campbell said he got a one-page flier in his mailbox a month ago, alerting him that a film team would be in his neighborhood this month.

He's been able to watch some of the process unfold from his front window — and said he supports the fact that a movie shoot is occurring in his small Westmoreland County community.

He recalled a PBS production on the French and Indian War being filmed about 20 years earlier in the region — but nothing like this.

"It can't hurt," he said. "And that inn is certainly the right age for it. It could have a good (impact) here."

Weltz is certain of that.

Whether it's tourists or a film crew spending time in the area, studies have shown people often spend between $100 and $400 per day dining and exploring, she said.

"Our businesses benefit," she said. "When they pass through, they want to try local dishes. They want to experience the local culture."

They'll get to experience something else, too — a Laurel Highlands winter.

"I hope they brought their snow boots and are ready," she said.

When it comes to a TV or film production, Weltz said the impact can be lasting — even after those bootprints are gone.

Once the finished work hits theaters or streaming devices, movie fans often travel long distances to see the spots where memorable scenes were shot.

"People are passionate about this kind of stuff," she said. "They call it pop culture for a reason — because it's popular."