Editing Being There (section)

===Filming===
Principal filming occurred at the [[Biltmore Estate]], the largest private home in the United States, located in [[Asheville, North Carolina]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Henion|first=Leigh Ann|title=A Behind-the-Scenes Visit to Biltmore|date=March 2011|work=[[Our State]]|url=http://www.ourstate.com/biltmore-insiders-tour/|access-date=May 12, 2015}}</ref> According to MacLaine, "(Peter) believed he was Chauncey. He never had lunch with me&nbsp;... He was Chauncey Gardiner the whole shoot, but believing he was having a love affair with me."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-11-30 |title=Shirley MacLaine On What Peter Sellers Was Really Like |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkdXTaHsSu0 |website=Hudson Union Society |via=YouTube}}</ref> The original ending as written in the script was filmed; it shows Eve finding Chance by the lake, they declare they have found each other, and both walk back together.<ref>{{YouTube|ZPZrFbpgRt4|Being There (alternate ending)}}</ref> However, Ashby was unhappy with this ending so he had a platform submerged in the lake for Sellers to walk on, creating the film's enigmatic final scene.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://gointothestory.blcklst.com/great-scene-being-there-1a2246027569|title=Great Scene: 'Being There'|website=gointothestory.blcklst.com|date=2 July 2022}}</ref>

Melvyn Douglas's granddaughter, [[Illeana Douglas]], visited the set and met Peter Sellers, who is her favorite actor. She has since credited the film for inspiring her to pursue a career in acting. According to Illeana, Sellers and Douglas had known each other since the 1940s, when they first met in the [[Burma campaign (1944–1945)]] during World War II. They often reminisced about their war days while on the set.<ref name="francisco">{{cite web |last=Vigil |first=Delfin |date=February 15, 2009 |title=Illeana Douglas inspired by Melvyn's 'Being There' |url=http://www.sfgate.com/entertainment/article/Illeana-Douglas-inspired-by-Melvyn-s-Being-There-3250931.php#photo-2399605 |access-date=September 6, 2015 |work=[[San Francisco Chronicle]]}}</ref> The making of the film is portrayed in ''[[The Life and Death of Peter Sellers]]'', a biographical film of Sellers's life.