Where was Anna Karenina filmed? From St. Petersburg palaces to Shepperton stages – tragic romance, frozen cameras, and Sean Bean’s best mustache.
Leo Tolstoy’s 800-page weep-fest, Anna Karenina, has been adapted again and again: a St. Petersburg socialite (Greta Garbo, Vivien Leigh, Sophie Marceau, or Keira Knightley) ditches her boring husband for a mustachioed hottie .
Spoiler: it always ends with a train.
The 1997 Anna Karenina film (Sophie Marceau, Sean Bean) made history as the first Western production to shoot entirely on location in Russia – real Imperial-era bling and frozen actors.
The 2012 version (Keira Knightley, Aaron Taylor-Johnson) got weird and theatrical inside a London studio. The 1935 classic (Greta Garbo) stayed in sunny California.
Let’s tour the opulent madness across every adaptation.
Table of Contents
🚂 Anna Karenina (1997) Filming Locations
Strap on your fur hat and pretend you don’t speak French – we’re touring the real Russia that Hollywood never dared touch until Mel Gibson wrote a very large check.
🏰 The Winter Palace & State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
Imagine Versailles on steroids, then add gold. That’s the Winter Palace (now part of the State Hermitage Museum).
Built for Russian monarchs who apparently hated empty walls, Anna glides through the halls of this Elizabethan Baroque masterpiece in the film, looking miserable in couture.
Sophie Marceau begged Mel Gibson for funding, and the crew gained access thanks to a $20 million check from his Icon Productions and a partnership with Lenfilm Studios – because 1990s Russia really liked American cash.
The palace’s 1,500 rooms meant the cast could get lost, which Sean Bean reportedly did twice. “Is this the ballroom or the broom closet?” he asked. Neither, Sean. Neither.
What was filmed here:
- Interior walks: Opulent Tsarist luxury on display
- Exterior backdrops: Wealthy Russians strolling dramatically
🩰 Catherine Palace, Tsarskoye Selo (Pushkin)
Thirty kilometers south of St. Petersburg lies a Rococo fever dream. Catherine Palace was built for Empress Catherine I, then expanded by her daughter Elizabeth, who clearly never met a gold leaf she didn’t like.
The Amber Room – a panel of fossilized resin worth millions – was sadly looted by the Nazis, but the reconstruction is so good you’d never know.
Here, Anna and Vronsky dance the Swan Lake Waltz (yes, Tchaikovsky’s tune) in the film’s signature ballroom scene. The temperature dropped so low during filming that extras’ eyelashes froze.
Sophie Marceau kept dancing because “the pain keeps me in character.” The crew used local Russian dancers as stand-ins for the orchestra – actual Mariinsky performers. Talk about a union win.
What was filmed here:
- Ballroom dance: Anna meets Vronsky’s smolder.
⛲ Peterhof Palace, St. Petersburg
Peter the Great wanted to out-do Versailles, so he built Peterhof Palace on the Gulf of Finland. The Grand Cascade features 64 fountains and 200+ gilded statues – because nothing says “humble nobility” like pressurized water and gold.
In the film, characters take opulent outdoor strolls here, pretending not to gossip about Anna’s affair. The production almost lost a camera when a fountain unexpectedly turned on mid-scene. “We were drying memory cards for a week,” griped one crew member.
The lower gardens’ geometric French layout made blocking easy: just walk straight, look tormented, repeat. Sean Bean reportedly asked if he could sword-fight someone. No, Sean. This is a tragedy, not Braveheart.
What was filmed here:
- Grand estate backdrops: Wealth mirrored in gardens.
🎭 Yusupov Palace, St. Petersburg
On the Moika River sits the Yusupov Palace, neoclassical home to the stupidly rich House of Yusupov.
Its claim to fame? That’s where they killed Rasputin in 1916. In the film, the palace hosts tense family gatherings – Anna trapped, awkward dinners, passive-aggressive silverware clinks.
The irony: while actors played repressed nobility, they were standing where a mystic was poisoned, shot, and drowned. “Kept the mood authentically dark,” said director Bernard Rose.
The crew filmed in the actual Moika wing, and Sophie Marceau joked that she “felt Rasputin’s ghost judging her performance.” The palace’s intimate rooms highlight Anna’s isolation.
Also, the catering was terrible – authentic 1870s gruel.
What was filmed here:
- Family drama: Rigid, isolated noble life.
🏛️ Menshikov Palace, St. Petersburg
Built in the 1710s for Alexander Menshikov (first governor of St. Petersburg), Menshikov Palace is one of the earliest stone structures in the city.
The film used its corridors and sitting rooms to match the 1870s setting. Fun fact: Menshikov fell from grace and was exiled to Siberia, which is basically Anna’s arc minus the snow.
The crew loved this location because it was less crowded than the State Hermitage Museum. “Fewer tourists, more angst,” said a location manager.
They filmed a key argument scene here – Anna and Karenin circling each other like angry peacocks. Sean Bean improvised a line: “You never listen!” The director kept it.
What was filmed here:
- Corridors & sitting rooms: Perfect 1870s vibes.
🎶 Mariinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg
Opened in 1860, the Mariinsky Theatre was where Tchaikovsky and Mussorgsky premiered bangers. In the film, this is where a shunned Anna faces public ostracization during an opera.
The chorus and orchestra you see? Not extras. Those are actual Mariinsky performers. The production paid them in rubles and eternal gratitude.
The scene required Sophie Marceau to cry while surrounded by glaring aristocrats. She did 14 takes because the director wanted “more despair, less sniffle.”
Meanwhile, the real Mariinsky Theatre still hosts ballet and opera, keeping its 19th-century aesthetic intact. If you visit, don’t mention the film’s fake snow – they’re still bitter about the cleanup.
What was filmed here:
- Opera rejection scene: Anna gets socially destroyed.
🏛️ Palace Square & Nevsky Avenue, St. Petersburg
Palace Square is St. Petersburg’s central plaza, dominated by the 1834 Alexander Column. The film used it for sprawling horse-and-carriage rides, troop formations, and characters traveling dramatically.
Nevsky Avenue, meanwhile, is the main drag – think 1870s Rodeo Drive. Tolstoy himself mentioned it in Anna Karenina as the epicenter of social status.
The crew had to shut down traffic for three days, causing a mini-riot. “Muscovites honked. We didn’t care,” said a producer. They filmed Anna’s shopping montage here – fur, hats, regret.
Sean Bean nearly got hit by a real carriage. “Method acting,” he shrugged.
What was filmed here:
- Carriage rides: Bustling imperial street life.
- Daily high-society traffic: Shopping and judgment.
🚂 Anna Karenina (2012) Filming Locations
Joe Wright’s 2012 version of Anna Karenina starring Keira Knightley and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, said, “What if the whole movie is inside a theater?”
So they built a derelict stage at Shepperton Studios just outside London. The set physically transformed – one minute a ballroom, next a train station.
It was weird, artsy, and perfect for the performative nature of Russian high society.
Outside filming locations:
- Ham House, Richmond: Vronsky’s fancy crash pad. Aaron Taylor-Johnson practiced his smolder here.
- Hatfield House, Hertfordshire: Karenin’s summer brooding. Jude Law (Karenin) looked appropriately miserable.
- Didcot Railway Centre, Oxfordshire: Moscow railway station. The steam train was real. Keira nearly fell off.
🚂 Anna Karenina (1935) Filming Locations
Greta Garbo’s 1935 Anna Karenina was pure Old Hollywood. Filmed primarily at MGM studios in Culver City, California – because why go to Russia when you have backlots?
The horse racing and steeplechase scenes were shot along the Monterey Peninsula, with stunt riders doubling for Garbo (who refused to get near a horse).
The studio built a fake snow set that melted under lights. “We’re in California, darling,” Garbo reportedly said. “I want to be alone… with a martini.”
What was filmed here:
- Monterey Peninsula: Steeplechase chaos.
- MGM studios: Garbo’s interior anguish.
✍️ Visit Yasnaya Polyana, Tolstoy’s Real Home
Located 200 km south of Moscow (12 km southwest of Tula), Yasnaya Polyana is a sprawling 1,100‑acre estate of birch forests, orchards, and ponds.
This is where Leo Tolstoy was born, lived for 50 years, wrote both Anna Karenina and War and Peace, and was ultimately buried.
The real woman who inspired Anna’s suicide? Anna Pirogova, mistress of Tolstoy’s neighbor, threw herself under a train at nearby Yasenki station in 1872 (Girl, seriously – no man is worth dying for!).
Tolstoy went to the station, saw her body, and wrote the ending shortly after. Grim.
What you’ll see here:
- Tolstoy’s House: White wooden manor with green roof, 22,000‑volume library, and the family samovar still on the table.
- The “Tree of the Poor”: Ancient oak where Tolstoy listened to peasants and gave advice.
- Tolstoy’s Grave: Simple grass mound in the Forest of the Old Order (no headstone, per his strict wishes).
- Tolstoy’s Peasant School: Where he taught local children his progressive methods.
- Tolstoy’s 100‑acre apple orchards: He was an obsessive farmer.
How to get there from Moscow:
Pack your walking boots – here’s how to make the pilgrimage to the writer’s actual estate where he wrote the book.
- High‑speed Lastochka train from Kursky Station to Tula (2 hr 15 min, ~700–1300 rubles).
- Trolleybus No. 6 or 7 to Ulitsa Mosina, then minibus 114/117/280 to Yasnaya Polyana stop.
- 15‑minute walk past birch lanes to the estate entrance.
❓ Anna Karenina FAQ
You’ve got questions. We’ve got answers that would make Tolstoy blush.
What is Anna Karenina about?
A married aristocrat falls for a hunky cavalry officer, gets shunned by society, loses her son, and throws herself under a train. Also, farming subplot.
What opium product did Anna Karenina use?
Morphine. She injects it to sleep. Tolstoy wrote it as a slow descent into addiction – very woke for the 1870s.
What is the opening line of Anna Karenina?
“Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” (You’ve seen it on mugs.)
When was Anna Karenina written?
Leo Tolstoy wrote it between 1873 and 1877 at Yasnaya Polyana, his estate 200 km south of Moscow. It was serialized from 1873–1877 and published as a novel in 1878.
Who is Levin in Anna Karenina?
Konstantin Levin – Tolstoy’s self-insert. A brooding landowner who finds peace in farming. The 1997 film with Sophie Marceau cut most of his arc (sorry, Levin fans).
How is the book different from the 1997 movie?
The film cuts Levin’s philosophical rants, removes prophetic dreams (no creepy peasant with iron), and rushes Anna’s morphine addiction from years to weeks.
Where did Tolstoy base the train station suicide?
Obiralovka Station (now Zheleznodorozhny). Inspired by a real woman, Anna Pirogova, who threw herself under a train after her lover left her. Tolstoy saw her body. Dark.
Who played Vronsky in the 2012 film?
Aaron Taylor-Johnson (in glorious mustache mode).
Famous Anna Karenina quotes?
- “I’m not jealous. I’m convinced.”
- “If you look for perfection, you’ll never be satisfied.”
📺 Where to Watch Anna Karenina
Ready to cry while eating popcorn? Here’s where to find the adaptations.
- Anna Karenina 1948 (Vivien Leigh)
- Anna Karenina 1985 (Christopher Reeve)
- Anna Karenina 1997 (Sophie Marceau)
- Anna Karenina 2012 (Kiera Knightley)
- Anna Karenina series (2017)
And finally, whether you watch Anna leap in a St. Petersburg palace, a London soundstage, or a California backlot, just remember: the train wins – but at least the architecture is gorgeous. 🚂
Disclaimer: This fan-created article is provided for entertainment purposes only. We don’t guarantee the accuracy of any of these facts and don’t recommend making important life decisions based on them. All referenced titles, names, and related intellectual property are the property of their respective owners, and no copyright infringement is intended.
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