Fascinating glimpse into a 90-acre FAKE town in Canada built as a set for movies and TV – and comes complete with a liquor store, gas station and pharmacy
A video of a ‘fake town’ in Canada has left TV and movie fans dumbfounded after a video of the 90-acre space went viral on TikTok.
Cinematographer Matt Aitia shared a glimpse of the desolate area in a 31-second clip that he captioned simply, “Backlots are crazy.”
Matt is curt video began with an exterior shot of the road surrounded by buildings, explaining, “This is a fake city built for filming movies, TV shows, commercials, and everything you see here is completely fake.”
He then went behind the scenes of various locations of the creepy town, revealing that it is home to a fake gas station, as well as fake brick walls and a mock-up ATM.
To make the space look as realistic as possible, there is also a so-called bar and grill restaurant, a fake dry cleaner, a variety shop and even a tobacconist.
Not really: TV and movie fans are stunned by a ‘fake town’ in Canada with a very realistic bar and grill
No cars: The creepy town in Pickering, Ontario, has its own fake gas station with several pumps and a cash register
Fake medicines: a so-called pharmacy is located on the corner of one of the streets and even has beauty products in the shop window
However, at the very end of the video, Matt revealed that there is a real restaurant and barber shop nearby.
Since the video was posted on July 28, it has garnered 3.4 million views, and TikTok users quickly responded to the post, speculating about what TV shows and movies were filmed there.
“I thought it was the set for the Truman show,” said one person, referring to the 1998 Jim Carey movie.
Another person agreed, writing, “Truman Show vibes,” to which Matt replied, admitting, “That’s what it felt like haha.”
Someone else commented, “This is so cool,” while another claimed, “It looks lonely and sad.”
Another person pointed out, “best for movies about zombies,” and someone else joked, “Oh so that’s why most of the cities in movies and TV shows look extremely clean.”
However, Matt didn’t just post one TikTok video, he shared another three clips and responded to some of the comments.
In his second post, he confirmed that it was actually the “largest backlot in all of Canada for filming productions” and is located in Pickering, Ontario.
Wide Open Space: The 90-acre backlot is a unique and extremely versatile space with 30 storefronts
Be seen: Cinematographer Matt Aitia posted a video of the ‘fake town’ to his TikTok page and it has since gone viral
On set: Amazon TV series Reacher was filmed on the backlot in Pickering starring actor Alan Ritchson
Eating out: The so-called diner appears to be a huge space decked out with lots of tables, booths, and bright red chairs
“You may recognize it from Reacher,” Matt added, confirming that the Amazon Prime action series was filmed here.
In a scene from the eight-episode season, Ritchson’s character is seen in the restaurant as the police raid it with guns and confront him.
In another shot, he is filmed walking down the fake street and past several shops.
An eagle-eyed TikTok user spotted a faux pas in Matt’s video as he attempted to enter the fake dry cleaners by pulling the blue door. He eventually had to push it to get in and one person responded to the post, “The door said pull and it needed to be pushed open,” followed by a laughing emoji.
Matt decided to respond to the comment with a separate video, admitting it had “taken him a while to figure it out.”
And another post, he replied to a person who commented on his original video, “This is so much effort and it looks so expensive to make.” What for?!’
“Filming on a backlot is usually cheaper than real locations for a number of reasons,” explains Matt.
“It can be super expensive to close down an entire street for a movie shoot. Backlots eliminate the need for permits, planning, and coordination with property owners.
Behind the scenes: Ritchson films Reacher in the mock city that lies east of Toronto
Looks familiar: Netflix series Wednesday, starring Jenna Ortega, also features a scene shot in the massive restaurant
All the details: The dining room looks very realistic and is packed with crockery and complete with menu board and coffee machine
Clean clothes: TikTok user Aitia made it a point to show off the fake dry cleaners in his viral video
Not a real wall: Aitia also filmed peeling off some of the fake masonry which looked very realistic
“They also save time because there is less travel time between locations, allowing for more hours of recording per day.
“They’re also designed for versatility, allowing filmmakers to film in different locations without logistical and transportation hassles,” he added.
The City of Pickering’s official website states that “an impressive list of feature films, TV series and TV commercials have been shot in Pickering over the past decade, using a wide variety of urban and rural locations.”
Described as a “unique and extremely versatile space,” this particular 90-acre backlot can accommodate a range of backdrops from a “rustic small town to modern New York City streets.”
In addition to 30 storefronts and five interior sets, outside the “city” there are also “expanses of remote fields and woods for outdoor shots of the countryside.”