Where Was Reacher Filmed? Filming Locations Explained
David Mccullough Set amidst a sleepy rural town, Amazon's Reacher breathes new life into Jack Reacher's adventures with its sprawling, picturesque filming locations.
Based on Lee Child's novel series, Amazon's action thriller, Reacher, unfolds in the backdrop of a small fictional rural town called Margrave, which was entirely recreated and filmed in Ontario, Canada. The show begins with the titular character arriving in the sleepy town, where he gets embroiled in a conspiracy that leads to his arrest. Determined to prove his innocence, Reacher puts his brain and brawn to good use to get to the bottom of the plot against him. Boasting an incredible cast that includes Alan Ritchson, Willa Fitzgerald, and Malcolm Goodwin, the show's first season has had a successful run, and only a few days after its release, Amazon has renewed Reacher for season 2.
Amazon's Reacher cleverly makes a character out of its Georgian town where, in a meager population of 1700, word travels faster than wildfire. The town is entirely fictional and was first envisioned by Lee Child in his 1997 Jack Reacher novel, Killing Floor. However, it does make some real-world references. For instance, Blind Blаke, the character who introduces Jack Reacher to the remote town, was actually a renowned blues musician in the late 1920s.
Transferring this town to the small screen, Reacher's showrunners traveled to Ontario, Canada, in April 2021 and cleverly reenacted Child's vision. The showrunners used ingenious set designs to morph an Ontarian movie backlot into the first season's Reacher's primary backdrop, Margrave (via toronto.com). Several key locations featured throughout the show's runtime, including Mosley's barbershop and the Margrave Dine, were created on this set. However, many scenes from the first season were shot in real locations as well. Case in point: a local Port Perry cafe, called The Piano Inn and Cafe, was transformed into JJ's Ale House for filming Reacher. The cafe confirmed this (via Facebook) and hinted that a bar fight ensues in the piano cafe.
In early April 2021, Reacher's production was on the lookout for background performers in and around the Kingston Penetiatry (via Kingstonist). The high-security facility, now a museum, can be spotted in the first episode. Episode 2 then walks viewers through Perry and Queen Streets in Port Perry and also features a slambang action scene where Jack Reacher dukes it out with a bunch of juveniles in Stratford Suburban Motel. Further in the series, viewers may notice other Ontario locations, such as the Highway 407 transit terminal in Vaughan, the Lakeview Restaurant at 1132 Dundas Street W (portrayed as Apolline's Diner in Memphis), and the Black Bridge Road in Cambridge. In a few other scenes, the show also disguises Ontario Heritage Centre as New York.
Tom Cruise's version of Jack Reacher created quite the stir and left Lee Child's loyal fans dissatisfied. Amazon's Reacher makes up for that by not only aptly casting Alan Ritchson to play the 6'5'' behemoth of a man but also by reflecting on the author's style of scintillating police procedurals, edge-of-the-seat fight scenes, and immersive rural settings. With Reacher's potential on full display in season 1, it's exciting to anticipate how the show's creators will breathe new life into Child's fictional characters and locations in the next season.
