Naman Shrestha
The creation of Abi Morgan, Netflix’s ‘Eric,’ is a British psychological thriller series that revolves around the sudden disappearance of a nine-year-old boy and his father’s quest to find his missing son. Set in the 1980s, the narrative focuses on Vincent, a renowned puppeteer and creator of the popular children’s television show ‘Good Day Sunshine,’ whose life turns upside down when his son, Edgar, vanishes into thin air on his way to school. Living with guilt over his son’s disappearance, Vincent remembers him through his sketches of Eric, a blue monster. Desperate to bring Edgar home, he believes that he can get him to return by getting the monster puppet to feature on television. After creating the giant puppet, Vincent finds solace through his friendship with Eric.
Given his destructive behavior, he becomes distant from his loved ones, including family, friends, and work colleagues. Meanwhile, in his pursuit of the truth about Edgar’s disappearance, he encounters the truth about the city, which is filled with corruption and crime. He is also joined by Detective Ledroit, who gets pulled into the search for the missing boy. Led by the stellar performance from Benedict Cumberbatch, the crime drama show also features other talented actors in supporting roles, including Gaby Hoffmann, McKinley Belcher III, Dan Fogler, Clarke Peters, and Ivan Morris Howe. Since the story unfolds in 1980s New York, it takes the viewers back in time while raising questions in their minds about the actual filming locations.
Eric Shooting Locations
Benedict Cumberbatch and the rest of the cast and crew members travel to Hungary, New York, and New Jersey, especially Budapest and New York City, to film ‘Eric.’ According to reports, principal photography for the inaugural iteration of the thriller series got underway in January 2023 and continued for about four months before wrapping up in May of the same year.
Budapest, Hungary
Although a majority of ‘Eric’ is set in New York City, several pivotal sequences are lensed in and around Budapest, the capital of Hungary, situated at the center of the Pannonian Basin. Although various sites in the city stand in for the Big Apple, Budapest also consists of an existing New York backlot (originally constructed for ‘Hellboy II’ in 2008), which is utilized for the production of the mystery series. To be specific, the production team takes over the facilities of the Korda Studios at Etyek, Korda út 1572 hrsz to shoot numerous prominent scenes. The film studio is home to six different state-of-the-art sound stages, all of which are soundproof and of different sizes.
Korda Studios also gives filmmakers access to several production facilities, such as green screens, prop rental, insurance, work permits, world-class quality set construction services, and more. The cast and crew members utilize another film studio in Budapest—Astra Film Studio at Mogyoród, Napraforgó utca 1-3. Home to six sound stages, the facility offers an expansive backlot space for exterior film sets and consists of the city’s largest indoor water tank. Thus, it makes for a suitable filming option for many filmmakers.
New York City, New York
New York City serves as one of the primary production locations for ‘Eric,’ mostly because of the show’s settings. For the shooting of quite a few scenes, both interior and exterior, the cast and crew members set up camp on location across the borough of Manhattan. Many of you might be able to spot numerous buildings and monuments in the backdrop, such as the Manhattan Municipal Building, the Empire State Building, the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the New York Stock Exchange Building, and the Hearst Tower. The modern cityscape of New York City has been featured in many other film and TV projects over the years, including ‘Madame Web,’ ‘A Simple Favor,’ ‘The Departed,’ ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley,’ ‘Person of Interest,’ and ‘The Crowded Room.’
New Jersey
The shooting of the Benedict Cumberbatch starrer also takes place in the northeastern state of New Jersey. According to reports, the cast and crew members of the Abi Morgan creation set up camp in the Garden State for about five weeks while taping the first installment of the psychological thriller series. Apart from being home to a variety of sites that serve as ideal backdrops for a plethora of settings across diverse genres, New Jersey also offers lucrative tax credits, thus attracting the production of many movies and TV shows in the state.
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