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George Clooney, Bill Murray and Sofia Coppola stop by Astoria’s Taverna Kyclades

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Photos via Instagram/tavernakyclades

BY CRISTABELLE TUMOLA AND ANGY ALTAMIRANO 

Updated 2:55 p.m.

Astoria is becoming the next Hollywood hot spot.

Bill Murray brought some of his famous friends to Astoria’s Taverna Kyclades restaurant this week, including George Clooney, who was just spotted filming his latest movie in the neighborhood.

Murray must be a fan of the eatery, located at 33-07 Ditmars Blvd. and known for its fresh fish and Greek fare, because he stopped in twice with his film buddies.

Monday just got a whole lot better when Bill Murray and Sofia Coppola stopped in for lunch… #tavernakyclades #seafood #greekfood #freshfish #billmurray #snl

A photo posted by tavernakyclades (@tavernakyclades) on

On Monday, he came by during lunchtime with Sofia Coppola, who directed Murray in “Lost in Translation.” They were also accompanied by a man who appeared to be her brother — writer, director and producer Roman Coppola — and a group of four to five people. They stayed for about 30 minutes, according to waiter Nikolaos Tsarouhas.

He said the staff was surprised when Murray walked in and so were the customers.

“I saw him and I remembered him from the movie ‘Ghostbusters,'” he said. “He was really nice, very kind and quiet.”

THE COURIER/Photo by Angy Altamirano
THE COURIER/Photo by Angy Altamirano

The following day, during lunchtime again, according to the restaurant’s Twitter, Murray “loved [Taverna] so much he brought a friend.” And that friend was Clooney, who is in town to shoot “Money Monster,” co-starring Julia Roberts, Page Six reported.

Clooney is filming scenes for the Jodi Foster-directed thriller at the nearby Kaufman Astoria Studios, according to the Daily Mail.

The Oscar winner recently directed and acted with Murray in the 2014 WWII drama “The Monuments Men.” Murray even gave a toast at Clooney’s wedding to Amal Alamuddin last fall.

This is the first time that any of the actors have been to the restaurant, Tsarouhas said.

But star sightings in Astoria and other areas of Queens are becoming increasingly common as more TV and movie producers are choosing to film on local streets and at area studios such as Kaufman Astoria and Silvercup.

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