Where was Castle Rock shot? Revisiting filming locations of the Hulu supernatural horror

Castle Rock immerses the audience in a town that, from the first shot, is very off-putting but at the same time very real. The neighborhood feels like everyday life, and the people and buildings feel like very old friends. And the vibe has a subtle but never-lifting heaviness.

So, where was it shot? Castle Rock was mainly filmed in Orange, Massachusetts, while the interior scenes were shot at New England Studios located in Devens, Massachusetts.

That realism was not a mere coincidence! The production used real locations rather than studio sets or digital backdrops, isolating the locations for their ordinary look and natural solitude. These locations not only helped the series capture the atmosphere of Maine's fictional town but also enabled it to present a mature, real-world connection to the audience.

The reasons why Castle Rock was shot in Massachusetts

The show was supposed to take place in Maine, but was not filmed there. The selection was made in favor of Massachusetts because its small towns and hills closely matched those of rural Maine, making it a visually and practically very nice replacement.

The location, from the angles of architecture and nature, gave everything the production needed to create a tranquil New England town full of history. On top of that, there was the issue of the infrastructure. Massachusetts had the studio facilities and film resources already in place that enabled the show to maintain the same look and feel across episodes and seasons.

The combination of real locations and studio work, while maintaining a cohesive visual identity, came together well.

Orange, Massachusetts: The core filming location of Castle Rock

Among all the towns in Massachusetts, Orange is the one most often and steadily associated with the filming of the series. Besides the lists of filming locations, Orange has been identified as the main substitute for the imaginary Castle Rock of Maine.

The entire downtown area of Orange and the historic district underwent a series of transformations for the movie. At this location, not only the streets and the shop fronts but also the public areas were filmed for the exteriors, thus creating the visual backbone of the town. These places often appear throughout the series, giving it a strong presence and a recognizably stable character.

The selection of Orange was not made for grandeur but for discreteness. The city's quiet streets and old buildings blend so well with the film's somber mood, without diverting the audience's attention from the plot.

How Orange contributed to the characterization of Castle Rock

The momentary shifts in Castle Rock from one scene to another are effective through the use of settings, and between those settings, the one selected was the most appropriate. Thus, Orange, Massachusetts, became the primary contributor to this illusion of a place.

The coarseness of Orange living allows the drama to unfold slowly and quietly. The whole setting is so natural and real that the disturbing happenings are thus more astonishing. This treatment affirms one of the show's central themes: horrible things can occur where one least expects them.

Castle Rock: Interior filming in New England Studios, Devens

New England Studios in Devens, Massachusetts, was primarily used for interior and controlled filming, while Orange handled most exterior scenes. The studio facility enabled the production to build sets that look very fine on the inside and remain consistent across all episodes.

They shot the locations that needed to be used several times, had controlled lighting, or needed technical precision here. The sets were designed to visually resemble real-world places in Orange, enabling easy transitions between interior and exterior scenes.

Using Devens helped it to keep a realistic look and practical production requirements in the same breath without risking the show’s subtle visual style.

Additional filming sites

Beyond Orange and Devens, Castle Rock used only a few specific locations towards the end of production. These were minor yet clearly defined purposes of use.

For instance, some of the institutional or historical buildings in Massachusetts represented major story locations. Moreover, the Shawshank Prison sections were filmed at the West Virginia Penitentiary, a very popular filming location due to its preserved architecture.

The narrative portrayal of these places was the main criterion for selection. In contrast, the other two factors (i.e., continuity and closeness) were of minor importance, and the series incorporated them easily.

A consistent visual approach across both seasons of Castle Rock

Over the two seasons, Castle Rock always returned to the same main filming spots in Massachusetts. This uniformity played a vital role in preserving the town’s identity, even as timelines and characters constantly changed.

The use of Orange for exteriors and Devens for interiors was so frequent that the series made Castle Rock seem like the same place all the time. This visual consistency underlines the show’s concepts of memory, repetition, and unresolved history.

Why real locations matter in Castle Rock

Realism is one of Castle Rock's main characteristics. The series does not make use of overly dramatic or heavily stylized horror settings. The gradual emergence of the story's supernatural elements in credible environments was made possible by real-location filming.

The town never appears artificially constructed. Instead, it is presented as a place that is very much present, and the narrative becomes more disturbing. This realism gives the series emotional impact without relying on visual effects.

While the story takes place in Maine, Massachusetts dazzled the filmmakers with the visual, logistical, and atmospheric elements needed to create the fictional town. The place took on an identity of its own.

Castle Rock, by using real places and maintaining continuity across seasons, created a very realistic and creepy environment. The town is not unreal because it is extraordinary, but rather it is a place that could exist, silent, ordinary, and deeply eerie.