Arka Mukhopadhyay
Helmed by Marc Webb, the superhero movie ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ sees the resurrection of the web-slinging vigilante based on Marvel Comics’ eponymous character. Peter’s parents mysteriously left him with Uncle Ben and Aunt May, fading into the dark. Finding his father’s trails years later, Peter stumbles upon Oscorp, making a life-threatening discovery. After putting up a show at the subway, he returns home with a voracious appetite and begins exploring his newfound strength. With his abilities, Peter must investigate the disappearance of his father.
Upon its release, the movie was received moderately well, but in the following years, people have started to head back to the Andrew Garfield-starrer. Most of ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ unfolds in New York, the original home of the Spidey, with some spectacular panoramas and web-slinging shots in the mix. However, you must be wondering where the movie was filmed. In that case, here is everything you need to know.
The Amazing Spider-Man Filming Locations
‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ was filmed in New York and California, specifically Los Angeles County and New York City. On December 6, 2010, filming went underway and concluded in May 2011. John Schwartzman of ‘Armageddon‘ and ‘Pearl Harbor’ fame joined the team as the cinematographer. At the same time, J. Michael Riva, whose works in ‘The Color Purple‘ and ‘Iron Man’ were noticed by the critics, joined forces as the production designer. Now, let us take you to the specific locations where the movie was lensed.
Los Angeles County, California
Peter’s house may be in New York, but he comes to school on the west coast. The exterior school scenes were filmed at Taft High School, located at 5461 Winnetka Avenue, in the Woodland Hills suburbs of Los Angeles. On the other hand, the gym sequence where Peter breaks a sweat with the basketball was filmed at St. John Bosco High School, at 13640 South Bellflower Boulevard, in the Bellflower city of the Los Angeles metropolitan area.
The cast and crew then went to the New York Street backlot of Universal Studios Hollywood, a central Hollywood production facility owned by one of the so-called ‘Big Five’ studios. Located at 1000 Universal Studios Boulevard in the unincorporated community of Universal City, within the studio zone of San Fernando Valley, the iconic studio has been home to an array of popular productions, from ‘The Norwegian’ to John Carpenter’s ‘Escape from L.A.’
Additional studio work took place in Sony Pictures Studios, another member of the Big Five, situated on the old MGM lot whose history dates back to 1924. Located at 10202 W. Washington Boulevard, in the Culver City neighborhood around 10 miles west of Los Angeles, the studio boasts an eventful history. Apart from being a popular filming destination, the studio offers a behind-the-scenes tour of its legendary soundstages.
Some filming also took place in the South Pasadena and Woodland Hills neighborhoods of Los Angeles County. The cast and crew further headed to the Immanuel Presbyterian Church, a late 19th-century church located at 3300 Wilshire Boulevard in downtown Los Angeles. A significant sequence was lensed at the Fonda Theatre (formerly Guild Theatre), an iconic Spanish Colonial Revival style concert venue located at 6126 Hollywood Boulevard.
New York City, New York
Due to New York City being the home of the Spider-Man, a significant number of exterior and interior scenes were filmed in New York City. There were some landmark locations where the production team set up a shoot, while some areas were more clandestine. Among the noticeable sites is the US Customs House, a courthouse and administrative landmark building that doubles as a museum. Located at 1 Bowling Green, in New York City, just opposite The Battery, the venue stands for the NYPD headquarters.
The Oscorp building lobby and street-level exterior stots were taken in Hearst Tower, an iconic official building located at 300 West 57th Street in midtown Manhattan in New York City. In the movie, Peter poses outside the Oscorp lab at 8th Avenue and West 57th Street. However, the tracking shot of the building was CGI-made. Peter’s house scenes were filmed at a residence located at 36 Fuller Place in the Windsor Terrace neighborhood in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.
More filming happened in Richmond Hill, a commercial and residential area located in the borough of Queens. In addition, we can identify the Spider-Man web-swinging in one scene under the highway’s arches. It was captured at Riverside Drive, between 130th and 135th Streets, in the neighborhood of Harlem. Later, Peter gets on top of a building in a setting, hoping to launch below. The sequence was filmed on the rooftop of the MetLife Building, an iconic skyscraper located at 200 Park Avenue and East 44th Street.
Peter’s classmate and Oscorp worker Gwen Stacy’s apartment, is also in the city. The scenes were taped at a Manhattan residence at 15 West 81st Street and Central Park West. The bridge where Dr. Ranjit’s car stays stuck in traffic was recreated at Williamsburg Bridge, an iconic suspension bridge on Delancey Street across the East River. The busy bridge connects the Lower East Side of Manhattan to the Williamsburg area of Brooklyn.
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