News

Goran Višnjić Films ‘General’ In Zadar, Croatia

Filming scenes at the Zadar Forum for the movie 'General' about the life of General Ante Gotovina. This is also the only scene being recorded in the city of Zadar. For the purposes of recording, the Kalelarga traffic was blocked for half an hour to passers-by not to interfere with the film crew. While police and security stopped passers-by. Zadar Forum was the backdrop for the interview scene between General Ante Gotovina (Goran Visnjic) and General Janko Bobetko (Mustafa Nadarevic). Pictured: Goran Visnjic, Mustafa Nadarevic

Goran Višnjić stars as the titular character General Ante Gotovina in the upcoming film General.

GORAN VIŠNJIĆ FILMS GENERAL IN CROATIA

Starring alongside Višnjić is fellow Croatian actor Mustafa Nadarevic who plays General Janko Bobetko. Višnjić is a Croatian-American actor and is best know for his role as Dr. Luka Kovač on E.R. The General’s first wife, Colombian-born Ximene Dalel, was incorrectly reported to be played by Penelope Cruz. “Unfortunately, this is not true. We don’t know where the media got that information. It would be very nice if such a thing was even possible,” a source said.

General tells the story of Gotovina, a military figure involved in Croatia’s 1990s Homeland War, who was eventually acquitted of war crimes by the Hague Tribunal. The film is set for release in 2018 and began filming in Croatia this month. 85-year-old Antun Vrdoljak is directing, and despite the topic of the film, says it “won’t have a political dimension.”

“The script was sent to general Gotovina, but he had no complaints and he didn’t take any fee for copyrights,” Vrdoljak explained. “The best choice for the role of Gotovina was Goran Visnjic, as he is perfectly informed about his life. He talked with the general a number of times, and he was also at the trial in The Hague.”

Gotovina was indicted in 2001 for a military operation in 1995, where 600 Serb civilians were killed. He was acquitted in 2012. In May, 2015, the General agreed to join the country’s Homeland Security Council and became a special advisor to Defense Minister Damir Krsticevic last November.

Hillary Luehring-Jones