Where was The Long Walk shot? Revisiting key filming locations of the upcoming Stephen King adaptation

The Long Walk, the dystopian thriller Francis Lawrence-directed film, is just a month and a half away from its September release. An adaptation of a Stephen King novel from 1970, the movie is set in a dystopian United States where a group of young men participate in an annual walking contest. Participants are mandated to maintain a speed of at least three miles per hour, and failure to do so risks execution.

As mentioned before, the upcoming movie is directed by Francis Lawrence, and it stars David Jonsson, Charlie Plummer, Cooper Hoffman, and Mark Hamill. Considering the movie is taking place in the United States, you may believe that the movie was shot in the US, but that's not the case. The Long Walk was shot across the Canadian province of Manitoba.

Which places in Manitoba served as The Long Walk's filming locations?

The Long Walk began production on July 24, 2024, and was expected to wrap filming by September 12, 2024. Most of the movie was shot over the summer, as the makers wanted longer days, as they filmed scenes where the protagonists walk under the hot sun for countless hours. Listed below are The Long Walk filming locations across Manitoba:

Garson

Located close to Winnipeg, Garson is a quiet town where the cast and crew found it suitable to film long scenes in which the main characters cross empty roads and fields. People knew that the town would be a filming location, as the residents of Garson saw the crew of The Long Walk in the town last summer.

Winnipeg

Manitoba's capital city. Winnipeg is a popular filming location because it is a mix of both quiet country roads and city streets. The crew most likely used rural areas outside the city to give viewers of the endless road in the US the boys walk on.

St. Paul’s Church, Poplar Point

The crew also shot some scenes near St. Paul’s Church, which is located just east of Poplar Point. This church is from 1910, and it is observable in the background of a scene, in which an unidentifiable person is opening the church door as the boys walk past it.

It should be noted that the scene is very small; it was filmed in three days. But the crew took special care to film here because the church and its grounds require special care, as it is a heritage site that is around 114 years old. They used a trolley trailer to capture the shot without damaging the grounds.

Furthermore, the filmmakers also donated to the church as a gratitude for permitting them to film there.

What is the movie about?

As mentioned before, the film is an adaptation of Stephen King's acclaimed 1979 novel, which is of the same name as the movie. Directed by the same filmmaker who helmed Keanu Reeves' Constantine, the upcoming King adaptation promises to retain the pessimistic tone of the source material. The synopsis of the movie reads:

"From the highly anticipated adaptation of master storyteller Stephen King’s first-written novel, and Francis Lawrence, the visionary director of The Hunger Games franchise films (Catching Fire, Mockingjay – Pts. 1 & 2, and The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes), comes THE LONG WALK, an intense, chilling, and emotional thriller that challenges audiences to confront a haunting question: how far could you go?"