Cambridge locations used prominently in The Handmaid's Tale
City becomes Republic of Gilead in TV series featuring Elisabeth Moss
It has been France, Berlin, Boston and for its latest close-up, the City of Cambridge plays the Republic of Gilead in the TV series based on the Margaret Atwood novel The Handmaid's Tale now playing in Canada on Bravo.
Devon Hogue, the Business Information Officer for the City of Cambridge told CBC News the end production shows off quite a few locations that people living in the region would recognize if they're closely watching the show. That includes the Main Street bridge and the river walk by Mill Street Park, with Central Presbyterian Church off in the distance.
"[In] episode 3, the courtroom scene was actually filmed in our [city] council chambers," said Hogue.
"When they're walking the prisoner out from the building, that was filmed right in front of city hall. Coming up in episode 8 or 9, I believe they've used our market building."
Click on the map below to see the locations The Handmaid's Tale filmed in 2016/2017:
Hogue says she was approached by a location manager working on the MGM/Hulu production who asked for a walking tour of the city to see what Cambridge could offer.
A crew started shooting two weeks after that conversation and the crew returned to the location at least five times shooting in two episode blocks. Hogue said each episode took about a week of filming.
Hogue, whose first film project in Cambridge was the James Franco series based on the Stephen King book 11/22/63, said her department is usually approached by location managers who say the want to shoot a scene "by a river or something that looks like 1950s Boston."
"We get approached because of our architecture, our natural and built-in landscapes," said Hogue. "It's so beautiful and historic and in good condition that they can come in and use it."
Cambridge residents can sign up for the latest filming updates as some road closures could affect their drive around the city.