with his photographs as a memento of Rome. She and Joe share a few innocuous words together, before she reluctantly departs. After the rest of the press leave, Joe stays for awhile, then walks away alone. Cast Casting Wyler first offered the role to Hollywood favorite Cary Grant. Grant declined, believing he was too old to play Hepburn's love interest, though he played opposite her ten years later in Charade. Other sources say Grant declined because he knew all of the attention would be centered around the princess. Peck's contract gave him solo star billing, with newcomer Hepburn listed much less prominently in the credits. Halfway through the filming, Peck suggested to Wyler that he elevate her to equal billing—an almost unheard-of gesture in Hollywood. Wyler had initially considered Elizabeth Taylor and Jean Simmons for the princess' role, but both were unavailable. On 18 September 1951, director Thorold Dickinson made a screen test with Hepburn and sent it to director William Wyler, who was in Rome preparing Roman Holiday. Wyler wrote to Dickinson, saying that "as a result of the test, a number of the producers at Paramount have expressed interest in casting her." Roman Holiday was not Hepburn's first acting role, as she had appeared in Dutch and British films from 1948 and on stage, but it was her first major film role and her first appearance in an American film. Wyler wanted an "anti-Italian" actress who was different from the curvy Italian stars of that era: "She was perfect ... his new star had no arse, no tits, no tight-fitting clothes, no high heels. In short a Martian. She will be a sensation." Filming locations The Italian Ministry of Tourism had originally refused permission for the movie to be filmed in Rome, on the grounds that it would "degrade Italians". Once the matter was resolved, filming took place entirely in Rome and in the studios of Cinecittà. It was originally planned to be in color, but filming outside was so expensive that it had to be done in black and white. Mouth of Truth, Piazza Bocca della Verità, Church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin Caffè Rocca, Piazza della Rotonda and Pantheon Castel Sant'Angelo Trevi Fountain Piazza Venezia Piazza di Spagna Trinità dei Monti Colosseum Tiber river Via Margutta 51, the location of Joe's apartment where he hosts Princess Ann Via dei Fori Imperiali Via della Stamperia 85, the