Inspired by a true crime story that took America by storm, The Act is a limited series that was released on Hulu back in 2019. The 8-part series stars Joey King as Gypsy Blanchard, while the mother’s role is portrayed by Patricia Arquette.
The storyline of The Act revolves around Gypsy, a young teenager who uses a wheelchair due to an illness that she has had since she was a child. All her life, she had been told by her mom “Dee Dee” that she had cancer and had to stay at home to prevent her health from getting worse.
Dee Dee eventually becomes very overprotective of Gypsy, even stopping her from making new friends or exploring her sexuality. This causes Gypsy to become a rebel and discover many secrets about her illness and how her mother had been hiding a life-changing truth all along.
The story blew up once again in the last few months of 2023, as Gypsy was finally released from prison for being involved in the death of her mother. Besides Joey King and Patricia Arquette, the cast of The Act consists of AnnaSophia Robb playing the role of Lacey Hutches, Chloe Sevigny playing Melanie, and Calum Worthy stars as Nick Godejohn.
Filming Locations
With producers such as Nick Antosca and Michelle Dean, filming for The Act began sometime in October 2018 and ended by February of the next year. Major filming of The Act took place in areas around Georgia, USA, whereas the real Gypsy and Dee Dee were from Golden Meadows in Louisiana.
Georgia, United States:
The crew arrived in Effingham County, Southern Georgia to film the first few episodes of the true-crime drama. Not a of bustling localities or entertainment spots are present in this area, but it does have a similar atmosphere to Golden Meadows.
Productions like The Gift & Now and Then were filmed here too, but Effingham County remains an unexplored area for film producers. Almost all episodes of The Act had scenes that were filmed in this country.
Another place that was featured in The Act is Savannah, one of the first planned cities in the United States. Considered the “Hostess City of South”, Savannah has various beautiful coastal landscapes along with old architecture and other historical places.
Besides the picturesque parks, Savannah has also had its fair share of haunted stories that further increase tourists’ interest in the place. While it may be popular among visitors, Savannah has also famously appeared in movies like Forrest Gump, Pain Hustlers, The Menu, Baywatch, and Last Seen Alive.
The Savannah Mall located at 14045 Abercorn Street can be spotted in scenes from The Act. The mall used to be a popular hangout space for all generations of Savannah citizens back in the day, but it is now mostly empty and only a few shops are still open.
The city of Pembroke, Georgia, which has a population of a little over 3000 people made it into The Act too. Located just 35 miles from Savannah, the area was featured in movies like Gemini Man and Full Circle. With just a few residents living in the city, Pembroke carries the perfect lonely and cold feeling for a crime drama like The Act.
A major place in Pembroke where the crew filmed the scenes would be Bryan County Courthouse at 151 S. College St. Pembroke. The courthouse was chosen for the court scenes in The Act with Gypsy and Nick. The building was built back in the 30s, so it’s a part of the Pembroke Historic District.
While the building was available to use back in 2018, A major tornado in Pembroke caused damage to the courthouse in 2022. Filming for The Act continued in Rincon, Georgia. This is another city that falls within Effingham County and has a popular of almost 11,000 people.
The Spillway Court and Habitat for Humanity would be the most used places in the true crime drama. Productions like Last Seen Alive, Wild America, and Mediums are the only other projects that have been filmed here besides The Act.
The locations for The Act were carefully chosen to portray the suburban feel of Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s real-life home and the areas she had visited while staying with her toxic and mentally ill mother.
This sums up all known locations for The Act, now available on Prime Video or Hulu.
