It’s already the middle of October and the spooky season is just on the horizon! To no surprise, New York City is certainly getting into the seasonal mood. Neighbors are putting out faux cobwebs and hanging skeletons, while pumpkins line the steps of every drool-worthy brownstone. New Yorkers are certainly doing a fantastic job this year, however, can they beat these iconic horror movie sets, filmed right here in the heart of our city? Here is a list of the top 5 horror movie filming locations to get you into the Halloween spirit!
- THE DAKOTA
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Located at 1 West 72nd Street, this dark Victorian style luxury residence served as the perfect setting for Roman Polanski’s psychological thriller, Rosemary’s baby. Here, sweeping exterior shots of its facade were used to set the foreboding tone of this gripping horror flick. Constructed between 1880-84, it is an infamous national historical landmark with a fair share of its own troubled history. Most notably, musician and resident of the Dakota, John Lennon, was shot and killed at the South Entrance. He is survived by his wife, Yoko Ono, who still resides there today, claiming she can still see the ghost of her deceased husband at the site of his unfortunate murder.
- THe roosevelt hotel
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Fans of Stephen King absolutely cannot miss the Roosevelt Hotel on 45 East 45th Street. The film, 1408, inspired by a short story by King about a character spending the night in the fictional Dolphin Hotel, was actually filmed in this real life location in the heart of Manhattan. Here, you can step into the shoes of the skeptic played by John Cusack and brace yourself to be thoroughly convinced of the supernatural.
- fatal attraction
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This 1987 thriller is more unnerving than terrifying. In fact, one would call it a more modern horror story. Starring the talents of Michael Dougals and Glenn Close, this psychological roller coaster is set in the heart of the Meatpacking District on 675 Hudson Street. If you have time, take a stroll along the High Line and pop aside to take a peek at the apartment inhabited by Glenn Close’s histrionic anti-heroine. Maybe going there will be a cautionary tale that the old “it’s not you, it’s me” line doesn’t always go as planned.
- central presbyterian church
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Also known as St Andrew’s Catholic Church to the fans of the 1997 supernatural horror flick, Devil’s Advocate, Central Presbyterian Church, located on 593 Park Avenue, just off 64th Street, is an absolute must see. In this film, Keanu Reeves stars as the protagonist who finds out that his boss is literally the Devil, who so happens to visit this particular church to get water to boil at his touch. Although multiple locations in New York were heavily featured in this film, serious work began in 2018 to refresh the tired exterior of the church, leaving it spick and span and ready for your ‘grammable Halloween photoshoots!
- hook and ladder 8
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“If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call? Ghostbusters!” Although Ghostbusters isn’t technically a horror film, it is nevertheless a Halloween staple which deserves an honorary mention at the least. If fans ever pass this active FDNY firehouse located on 14 N Moore Street, they will immediately recognize it as the Ghostbusters Headquarters – home to the fictional paranormal exterminator service, armed with proton packs, ecto goggles and other ghost-catching equipment, ready to capture themselves some spooky prisoners!