Why ‘Star City’ Chose Lithuania to Build Its Soviet Space Empire

When Apple TV+ first announced a spinoff of its acclaimed alternate-history drama ‘For All Mankind,’ the immediate question fans had was not just about the story but about the world being built to tell it. A Cold War thriller set deep inside the Soviet space program demands authenticity that green screens and studio backlots simply cannot fake. The answer, it turns out, was waiting in the cobblestone streets and Soviet-era residential blocks of Vilnius, Lithuania.

‘Star City’ premiered on May 29, 2026, and it quickly became clear that the Lithuanian capital was not just a cost-effective filming destination but a genuine creative choice. The series earned a 94% approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average score of 8.10 out of 10. Before a single frame of that acclaimed season aired, the production team had spent months turning one of Europe’s most architecturally layered capitals into the most secretive address in Cold War history.

The ‘For All Mankind’ Spinoff That Looked Behind the Iron Curtain

‘Star City‘ is a spinoff series of ‘For All Mankind,’ announced by Apple TV+ on April 17, 2024, with the first season premiering on May 29, 2026. The show expands the alternate-history universe of its parent series but shifts the lens dramatically.

Rather than following the American side of the space race, the spinoff takes viewers behind the Iron Curtain, showing the lives of cosmonauts, engineers, and intelligence officers embedded within the Soviet space program, and the risks they all took to propel humanity forward.

The cast is led by Rhys Ifans and Anna Maxwell Martin, supported by Agnes O’Casey, Alice Englert, Adam Nagaitis, Solly McLeod, and Josef Davies. Rhys Ifans plays the Chief Designer, the driving force of the Soviet space program, while Anna Maxwell Martin takes on the role of Lyudmilla Raskova, a merciless KGB surveillance chief.

Ben Nedivi and Matt Wolpert serve as showrunners and executive producers, with Ronald D. Moore and Maril Davis of Tall Ship Productions also serving as executive producers alongside Steve Oster and Andrew Chambliss. The series is produced by Sony Pictures Television. ‘Star City’ had its world premiere out of competition at the 2026 Canneseries before its Apple TV+ debut.

Star City Filming Locations and Why Vilnius Was the Only Choice

Filming started in February 2025 in Vilnius, Lithuania, as reported by the Lithuanian website Made in Vilnius in January of that year. Principal photography for the thriller show got underway in February 2025 and went on for about five months, with the shooting process bringing together an international team of about 130 film industry professionals and an additional 40 cast and crew members.

Vilnius has become a go-to location for Soviet-era period drama because its Soviet-period architecture remains largely intact, offering production designers authentic facades and interiors without costly builds.

Several Soviet-style locations, such as Vingis Park and the Pašilaičiai district, were transformed to stand in for the actual Zvezdny Gorodok, the secretive cosmonaut training center outside Moscow that has existed since the early 1960s.

Production services were handled by Baltic Film Services, with Baltic Locations managing the filming locations. Both companies brought extensive experience from other major productions filmed in Lithuania, including HBO’s ‘Chernobyl,’ ‘Catherine the Great,’ BBC’s ‘War and Peace,’ and Netflix’s ‘Stranger Things.’ Ben Nedivi and Matt Wolpert stated that they were excited to be working in Vilnius, describing the cinematic landscape and architecture as a significant draw.

Inside the Key Locations Across Vilnius

Shooting locations included Vilnius’ historic Old Town, residential districts, and various building interiors. The historic district carries a strange cinematic quality where baroque architecture collides with faded Soviet-era surroundings, and several exterior walking scenes, intelligence meetings, and civilian sequences were reportedly filmed around these historic streets.

The filming unit also set up camp in and around the 400-acre Vingis Park, where various pivotal sequences for the ‘For All Mankind’ spinoff were captured. The production team was also spotted at the VRM Palace, also referred to as the Vilnius Palace of Concerts and Sports, located in the southernmost part of Žirmūnai, which features in the show multiple times and provides a wide variety of looks.

According to Made in Vilnius, executive producer Steve Oster singled out one location as particularly transformative. He revealed that the production filmed extensively in the MIA Palace building, noting that it provided a wide visual spectrum and became several important, recurring locations in the series.

When the Weather Became Part of the Story

One of the more surprising production details to emerge from Vilnius is just how much the natural environment shaped the final cut. Steve Oster noted that while the production covered both Vilnius and its old town, the residential areas of the city, and the interiors of various buildings, the unpredictable Lithuanian winter left a distinct mark on the tone of the early episodes.

During winter shooting conditions, the snow-covered Vingis Park reportedly added an accidental but visually stunning atmosphere to the opening episodes. Executive producer Steve Oster later admitted the production had not expected the snow to stay around so long, but instead of fighting it, they simply folded it into the series.

He stated that while they were not expecting the snow to stick around as much as it did, they wound up making it part of the story, and it created a unique tone for the beginning portion of the season.

Oster also highlighted that the diversity of Vilnius architecture was extremely important, given that the series is set in 1969 and the first season covers several different countries. The ability to find so many different visual solutions in one small area was described as a huge advantage for the production.

The Broader Impact on Lithuania’s Film Industry

The arrival of a high-profile Apple TV+ production carried significance well beyond the screen. Baltic Film Services local producer Lineta Mišeikytė stated that the choice to film in Lithuania recognises and acknowledges the professionalism and expertise of Lithuanians in film production, particularly in recreating authentic historical details.

According to the Vilnius Film Office, the creators themselves reflected openly on their initial uncertainty before arriving. The showrunners noted that while they knew they needed to shoot ‘Star City’ in Eastern Europe, having previously shot ‘For All Mankind’ in Los Angeles, they had concerns about how their style of production would translate to Lithuania. Those concerns were quickly put to rest, and they praised the Lithuanian crew for going well above expectations, stating that the show is only as good as it is because of them.

Production for ‘Star City’ was positioned as a premium tentpole designed to carry Apple TV+’s summer metrics, with the premiere date landing on the exact same Friday as the ‘For All Mankind’ Season 5 finale to capture a highly engaged audience. With critical reception now firmly behind it, Vilnius has earned its place in the ‘For All Mankind’ universe in ways no soundstage ever could.

Now that the locations behind the Soviet facades have been revealed, which of these Vilnius spots would you most want to visit after watching ‘Star City,’ and do you think the Lithuanian setting gave the series an authenticity that a traditional Hollywood production could never have matched?