AMC’s Monsieur Spade is an American-French neo-noir criminal thriller series that follows the retired peaceful life of the renowned Detective Sam Spade lived in the 1960s in southern France. It is based on Dashiell Hammett’s fictional private investigator, Sam Spade.
In contrast to his previous years working as a private investigator in San Francisco, he now has a peaceful existence that is abruptly disrupted by the emergence of an old competitor. When six nuns at the nearby convent are brutally killed, Spade is compelled to put on his old detective hat and resume his favorite hobby.
Spade investigates the case and discovers a link between the killings and an enigmatic youngster with strange powers. The studded cast includes Clive Owen, Cara Bossom, Denis Ménochet, Louise Bourgoin, and Chiara Mastroianni who gives outstanding performances in the Scott Frank and Tom Fontana production.
It makes sense that many would ask if Monsieur Spade was filmed on location or not, given that the majority of the plot takes place in Bozouls, where Spade’s peaceful life is upended and the thrilling shooting and pursuit sequences occur, and we’re going to look at the same.
Filming Locations
Filming for Monsieur Spade took place around France, mostly in Sauve, Bozouls, Pignan, Rodez, and Auvers-Saint-Georges.
Principal filming for the first season of the criminal series reportedly began in October 2022 and ended in December of the same year.
Bozouls, France
Bozouls, a French commune in the Aveyron department in the country’s south, is one of the main sites for filming of Monsieur Spade. Numerous streets inside the commune are used by the production crew to record key scenes against appropriate backgrounds.
For example, several spectators and onlookers noticed the actors and crew filming a few scenes for the first season of the show near a Canyon named “Trou de Bozouls” in Place de la Mairie in Bozouls.
Sauve, France
A major portion of the show is also shot in the Gard department of France, in the commune of Sauve. The filmmaking crew began setting up camp in September to construct and install the sets needed to start production, even though season 1 filming started in October.
To recreate the 1960s, the decade in which the drama is set, they painted fake storefronts, hauled in vintage cars, and decorated the streets appropriately.
Other Locations in France
The show production crew visits several places in France to do the filming. Clive Owen and the other members of the team make the most of the surroundings of Pignan, a commune in the department of Hérault in the Occitanie area.
Additionally, extra scenes for the thriller series are recorded at the commune of Auvers-Saint-Georges in the Île-de-France department of Essonne. The filming also took place in the little hamlet and city of Rodez.
Who are the creators and the Cast of Monsieur Spade?
Tom Fontana and Scott Frank are the creators of Monsieur Spade. Frank is most recognized for his work on The Queen’s Gambit and Minority Report. He is also an executive producer, director, and writer.
Parallelly, Fontana is most recognized for including Copper, Oz, and Homicide: Life on the Streets, he even wrote it.
Cast
The cast of the show includes Clive Owen as Sam Spade, Cara Bossom as Teresa, Denis Ménochet as Chief of Police Patrice Michaud, Louise Bourgoin as Marguerite Devereaux, Benjamin Duc as Anatole Chiara Mastroianni as Gabrielle, Stanley Weber as Jean-Pierre Devereaux, Matthew Beard as George Fitzsimmons, Jonathan Zaccaï as Philippe Saint Andre, Rebecca Root as Cynthia Fitzsimmons, and others.
Cast Reaction
As the show concluded filming, Benjamin Duc who is playing the character of Anatole shared his views on filming and his experience on social media. He wrote it was a wonderful experience and adventure.
The photo of Rebecca Root is so adorable, and beyond belief. An emotional instance, a delicate and genuine connection.
He hopes those he’s forgotten about can identify themselves. He thanked Rebecca and the entire crew, as he admired them a lot. Sharing the screen with them was a wonderful experience.
