cherharp santyn maynard
Giuseppina Worster
"Hollywood East" and "Wilmywood" are names that have been attributed to Wilmington through the years. With a long list of film and TV credits to its name, the Wilmington area has served as the perfect backdrop for blockbuster and indy productions alike since Firestarter filmed here in the early 1980s.
"Hollywood East" and "Wilmywood" are names that have been attributed to Wilmington through the years. With a long list of film and TV credits to its name and home to Cinespace Studios Wilmington and Dark Horse Studios, the Wilmington area has served as the perfect backdrop for blockbuster movies, TV shows and indie productions alike since the early 1980s. Discover favorite movie and beloved TV show locations, like "One Tree Hill" or "Dawson's Creek" with self-guided tours and learn more about projects that are currently in production in Wilmington and its surrounding beaches.
Get ready for an exciting adventure on the brand new Wilmywood Movie & TV Location Walk! Join lively, costumed guides every Wednesday and Saturday at 10:30 a.m. for a fun-filled 90-minute tour through the iconic filming locations of Wilmington. Whether it's visiting an active film set, exploring historic interiors or spotting movie props around town, each tour is unique and packed with surprises.
You'll think you're back in Tree Hill as you make your way through Wilmington with the self-guided One Tree Hill locations tour. Explore popular and recognizable film locations like "The Naley Bench" overlooking the Cape Fear River on the Riverwalk, Greenfield Lake Park, the backdrop to Lucas and Peyton's wedding in season six, or Wilmington's Harry Forden Bridge (694 N. Sixth St.), the one-lane metal truss bridge that appears in the show's opening sequence in seasons 1-4. Join TRIC Tours for an exclusive look inside the iconic TRIC Nightclub in downtown Wilmington. This self-guided tour features replica props from Chase's apartment and Peyton's bedroom, the original Red Bedroom Records door and more. Afterwards, shop for exclusive merchandise at the OTHmerch Souvenir Shop.
Embark on a self-guided tour and visit popular film sites from Amazon Prime Video's hit series, "The Summer I Turned Pretty." Based on the books by New York Times best-selling author, Jenny Han, "The Summer I Turned Pretty" follows Belly, a teenager who spends the summer in Cousins Beach reconnecting with two old friends, Conrad and Jeremiah. The series filmed in Wilmington and its nearby beaches. Visit locations like Fort Fisher State Historic Site in Kure Beach where Cam and Belly cycled along the trails or snap a photo where Taylor and Belly walk along the beach near Crystal Pier in Wrightsville Beach. In Carolina Beach, visit The Fat Pelican, where Laurel and Susannah decide to stop at a local bar. Season two is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video and features several local spots including downtown Wilmington's Hell's Kitchen and the Rooster & The Crow.
Season three of the series, "The Summer I Turned Pretty" is now filming to Wilmington and Island Beaches. The plot continues to follow teenagers Belly, Conrad and Jeremiah's love triangle story in Cousins Beach. Season three will expand to eleven episodes, up from seven and eight in the previous seasons.
Amazon MGM Studios' upcoming romcom "Merv" is now filming in Kure Beach. Currently in production, the film, starring Zooey Deschanel, follows a recently separated couple who take their dog on a beach vacation to cheer him up.
Get ready for The Runarounds, a new series filming in Wilmington, North Carolina. Created by Jonas Pate, the co-creator of Outer Banks, this eight-episode series follows a diverse group of young adults forming a rock band the summer after high school. Set against the picturesque backdrop of Wilmington, Set to be released on Amazon Prime, The Runarounds explores the challenges of young adulthood, as the band members face the pressures of real life while pursuing their dream of becoming the greatest band of all time.
TV Series:
"Outer Banks," a popular Netflix series, recently filmed in the destination. The plot follows teenager John B (Chase Stokes) and three of his best friends, JJ (Rudy Pankow), Kiara (Madison Bailey) and Pope (Jonathan Daviss), as they search for legendary treasure. Season four filming locations included Crystal Pier and Oceanic Restaurant in Wrightsville Beach and Fort Fisher State Recreation Area in Kure Beach. Season four of "Outer Banks" is scheduled to premiere in 2024.
Starring Russell Crowe, "The Exorcism" is now playing in theaters. Filmed in Wilmington in 2019, the film, originally titled "The Georgetown Project," is a psychological thriller following an actor (Crowe) who becomes unhinged while filming a horror movie. The film also stars Adam Goldberg from "Dazed and Confused" Ryan Simpkins from "Revolutionary Road" and Chloe Bailey from "The Little Mermaid." Filming locations include Front Street, Dock Street, Brooklyn Arts Center and more.
"Breakwater," a new thriller film directed by James Rowe, was filmed in Wilmington and is now playing in theatres. The plot follows Dovey (Darren Mann), an ex-con who risks his freedom to help Ray (Dermot Mulroney), a fellow inmate who escaped prison, search for his estranged daughter. Some filming locations include Airlie Chapel located in the Airlie Gardens.
"Zoey 102," a movie sequel to the hit Nickelodeon television series "Zoey 101," was filmed in Wilmington. The movie takes place present day and follows the original "Zoey 101" characters, including Zoey Brooks (Jamie Lynn Spears), Erin Sanders (Quinn Pensky), Matthew Underwood (Logan Reese) and more when they reunite for a wedding. Filming locations include Origins Food and Drink, the Common Desk and Hell's Kitchen. The film is now playing on Paramount+.
"Florida Man," a television series starring Edgar Ramirez and Abbey Lee, is now streaming on Netflix. The series follows a former cop who travels from Philadelphia to his home state of Florida for a quick gig. His job is to hunt down a mobster's fugitive girlfriend, but his journey turns into a discovery of buried family secrets. Filming locations include the Rusty Nail, Wilmington Riverwalk, Jack Mackerel's Island Grill, Carolina Beach Boardwalk and Robert's Grocery.
You'll be surprised by the number of stars who have filmed in Wilmington and our island beaches. Browse through an extensive listing of stars, including many Oscar, Grammy and Tony Award-winners, who've worked on productions filmed here and see how many you recognize.
Dubbed as one of the largest film festivals in the South and recognized by Moviemaker Magazine as "One of the Coolest Film Festivals in the World," Cucalorus Film Festival attracts filmmakers, dancers, performers and cultural travelers from all over the world to Wilmington to celebrate the film industry. This annual festival features more than 90 films from around the world, events and a diverse selection of stage performances over the course of five days each November.
If you're looking for one of the most popular filming locations from box office movies and top-rated TV shows, head to Airlie Gardens in Wilmington. Discover film locations featured in "King Kong Lives," Nicholas Spark's "The Choice," "Black Knight," the "Sleepy Hollow" and "Dawson's Creek" TV series and more with their Filmed at Airlie brochure.
The photos on the right show the Rivercourt (or where it should have been) from across the river. I knew that it was supposed to be there, but a quick Google search revealed that the court was torn down after filming. I wanted to go across the river and at least see the court where it used to be, but at this point Russ was texting me saying that he was done and needed picked up already. I was frustrated because there were more places that I wanted to visit and the Rivercourt was the one I had wanted to see the most.
I started walking back to my car, at which point it started raining (oh great) and I still had several blocks to go and was now in a hurry because Russ was waiting on me. But as I was walking down the street I saw this in the window of a shop.
My wife and I were very much into it. We watched it from the first show came on TV to the last one when they were all meeting on the street to go watch Jamie play his basketball game. And we were 55 when the show ended.
Hi! I absolutely loved your post, I am going next week and would love to visit all of these places! Thank you so much for the post, but it says your complete list link has expired, is there anyway you could post all the location addresses? Thank you so much
I am in Wilmington for the 5th time. All of the houses are there minus the season 4 finale house . If you did not visit the filming locations yet I am sorry. Tric is now closed as well. The river court is torn down but there are post on the gazebo that fans sign. To go over, take the boat from market street ($6) and enjoy an afternoon looking over to downtown Wilmington. When I get back from vacation I will post all the places my best friend and I have visited. Oth truly feels like home. ?
We used your post to find many places this week while we visited the area. We went to find the high school which was filmed at the Schwartz Center building of Cape Fear Community College. We wandered around a bit and there was some construction going on at the building. A construction worker asked if he could help us. We told him what we were looking for and he took us behind the construction fence to show us that part of the building which was being torn up to add to the building. We could see the white square arches but they were completely filled in with building. We were so disappointed.
not to worry your not the only one that watched this show. i watched it faithfully during the early years of being a single mom and then after i met my husband, he was hooked on the show too. both of my girls are named after this show.. brooklyn and hailey. i am planning my first trip to NC and cant wait to see some of these landmarks. i think pictures of them in my girls room will be awesome and help them see where i named them from.
thanks for sharing all your fun and pictures.