What’s filming in Atlanta now? Michelle Darnell, Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, Table 19, and Survivor’s Remorse

Atlanta’s celebrity invasion continues with Vin Diesel, Kristen Stewart, Chris Tucker, Anna Kendrick, Stephen Merchant, and Oscar winner Ang Lee. Plus, a preview of upcoming projects.
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A burned out bus, part of a set for
A burned out bus, part of a set for "Cordon" on Edgewood Avenue

Photograph by Matt Walljasper

Along with yellow pollen piled along Atlanta’s sidewalks, spring has ushered in new thickets of yellow production signs along our roads. This busy month has brought us burned out buses, Texas taxicabs, Chicago newspapers, and scenery from the 1930s and 1980s. Productions are shooting in Midtown, downtown, and a lot of OTP locales.

“Michelle Darnell” (Code: Darlings), staring Melissa McCarthy, Kristin Bell, and Peter Dinklage, has been spotted all over town. They finished March in Castleberry Hill and near the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. In early April, they took drives out to Forsyth County and Morrow. Their biggest splash, however, was off of 14th Street and Crescent Avenue, where set designers transformed the area into Chicago’s Michigan Avenue. Following that, “Michelle Darnell” took up residence on Juniper Street and 5th Street. Last week, they filmed at the downtown W Hotel and Gwinnett Arena.

Three-time Academy Award winning director Ang Lee (“Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon,” “Brokeback Mountain,” “Life of Pi”) is in Georgia filming his latest, “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk” (BLLHW). Based on the book of the same name, the story follows a squad of Iraq War vets on a stateside victory tour. The film stars Vin Diesel, Kristen Stewart, Steve Martin, and Decatur’s own Chris Tucker. For the most part, production has been down in Locust Grove. You may also have heard of the controversy the movie created by shooting in Canton’s Georgia National Cemetery. Recently, filming has been spotted within the city. On April 13, Woodruff Arts Center was turned into a Dallas-area hotel complete with Texas-registered cabs and cars. For this week and the next, Falcons fans may bristle when the interior of the Georgia Dome will be transformed into the Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium. Filming will take place at night April 20 through April 24, and during the day the following week.

Anna Kendrick, who’s been in Atlanta for a while now filming “The Accountant” (Wolf), has a new movie in the works. She stars in the singles-at-a-wedding comedy, “Table 19” (T19), along with Stephen Merchant, Craig Robinson, and Lisa Kudrow. A lot of filming for this one’s been near Lake Lanier and more recently off of 3rd Street in Midtown. Crews have also been spotted near 17th Street at the Courageous Worship Church.

Shipping containers block Atlanta from the outside world in "Cordon," filming in Atlanta on Edgewood Avenue.
Shipping containers block Atlanta from the outside world in “Cordon” on Edgewood Avenue.

Photograph by Matt Walljasper

All the television pilots we covered last month have wrapped. It’ll be a few months until we find out which, if any, get picked up for a season order. But regardless of whether they float off into the wind, become the next Emmy winning series, or somewhere in between, we’ll always have the filming sites. “Cordon” (Code: 1159) was the most visible, shooting in late March at the AT&T Tower and the Avondale Estates MARTA station, as well as in front of Atlanta City Hall and the Georgia Building Authority on April 1. Its biggest splash came during the last week of March when production shut down Edgewood Avenue to create the edge of a quarantine zone. Debris and shipping containers transformed the area into something truly apocalyptic. “Quantico” (Q), filmed at Peachtree Center on March 22, and “Game of Silence” (GOS) was in Midtown on April 1.

“Survivor’s Remorse” (SRS2), on Starz, is currently shooting its second season. Featuring Jessie Usher as a professional basketball player dealing with the money, fame, and power  after making it big, the show takes place primarily in Atlanta. Crews were spotted in Marietta at Brunswick Bowling on March 24, Paces Ferry Road on March 26, and downtown on April 6. On April 10, the show also took over Buckhead Nails & Spa Pedicure in Brookhaven. Their basecamp for that shoot was spotted at Windsor Parkway and Hillview Avenue.

The third, hopefully less CGI deer infested, installment of the American “The Ring” series, “Rings” (O), has been active this month. Full of relative newcomers as well as “The Big Bang Theory” mainstay Johnny Galecki, fans will be glad to know that David Dorfman, Aiden of the previous two films, is back. For most of late March, “Rings” set up shop in Decatur, shooting a good chunk of that time in the historic Decatur Cemetery. Filming has also taken place in downtown Newnan and Grantville. Signs were spotted on the Fulton and Coweta County lines on Roscoe Road as well as off of I-75 and Howell Mill. There will be more horror action in town this week as well.

“In Dubious Battle” (IDB) has wrapped its northern Georgia scenes, but before then it was spotted in Bostwick, at the Southeastern Railway Museum on April 1, and south of Senoia. Ben Affleck’s “The Accountant” (Wolf) ended March near Georgia Tech before shooting in Gainesville. A basecamp was spotted near Woodruff Park on April 1. “Alvin and the Chipmunks 4: Road Chip” (AC4) shot at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport at the end of March, and will be on Tall Pines Road this week. “Halt and Catch Fire” (HCF) turned the Peachtree Center area into a 1980s street on March 31. “The Originals” (TOGS) continues to shoot in Conyers, and “Finding Carter” (WHO) had a basecamp at Due West United Methodist Church in Cobb County on March 14. We’ve also heard that USA’s “Satisfaction” (SAT) has begun shooting its second season, filming at Colony Square in Midtown on April 16 and near Williams Street on April 19.

Next month, we should have some updates on “Captain America: Civil War.” From what I’ve heard the production code will probably be “Sputnik.” The next Divergent Series movie, “Allegiant” should also start in May. “Amnesia” will be the code for that one. Up in Ball Ground, “Mena” will bring Tom Cruise to Georgia. Zach Galifianakis and Jon Hamm will also be here to shoot “Keeping Up with the Joneses.” With all of that, there should be a lot of movies to keep track of. Happy sign hunting everyone, and remember, please be respectful to all of the hardworking casts and crews out there if you do stop by to try to sneak a peek of any production.

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