Film buffs and star struck fans can cozy up to the magic of moviemaking when the Garden State unveils its starring role in television and big screen productions along the New Jersey Film Trail.
Sponsored by Sen. John Burzichelli (D-3), Sen. Jim Beach (D-6), Rep.William Moen (D-11) and Rep. Margie Donlon (D-11), A-4883/S-4268 was recently signed into law by Gov. Mikie Sherrill and takes effect Nov. 8. The Division of Travel and Tourism (NJOTT) and the New Jersey Motion Picture and Television Commission (NJFilm)are currently developing the trail’s interactive website, and initial locations. An opening date for the trail has not yet been announced.
“Identifying the locations where some of the most memorable movies and TV shows were filmed would be a celebration of New Jersey’s cultural impact that would support local tourism and small businesses throughout the state,” said Burzichelli. “The Film Trail will give residents and visitors a new way to recognize and appreciate the stories that were filmed right here in the Garden State.”
The website will feature filming locations, photos, directions and suggested itineraries highlighting nearby attractions, restaurants, lodging and entertainment.
What will the New Jersey Film Trail include?
The NJOTT is collaborating with the NJFilm to identify locations used in popular movies, television programs and other entertainment productions.
According to the legislation, the program is required to include:
- Official markers at selected filming locations
- The name of the production filmed there
- Performers associated with the location
- The date or period when filming occurred
- Other historical or production information selected by the state
- A searchable website
- An interactive map
- Driving and public-transit directions
- Photographs of each site
- Information about tours, where available
- Suggested vacation itineraries
- Nearby restaurants, hotels, attractions and entertainment
Residents, businesses and other private organizations will be able to recommend locations through an online submission form. The Film Commission must verify the filming history before a site is accepted.
Private homes are specifically excluded. That means, for example, the state could recognize a restaurant, park, public building, boardwalk, studio or commercial property — but it cannot direct visitors to someone’s residence simply because a scene was filmed there.
Markers placed on state property may be purchased and installed by the state. Public money cannot be used to produce, purchase or install markers on private property. A private business or property owner may pay for a marker, but its design and wording must be approved by the state.
The Office of Legislative Services said the program will create an undetermined annual state expense, potentially absorbable within the NJOTT’s existing budget. No fixed appropriation was included.
What locations could eventually be included?
The state has not released an official list, but the inventory of possible locations is extensive:
- Camp No-Be-Bo-Sco in Blairstown — Friday the 13th
- The Quick Stop in Leonardo — Clerks
- The Bada Bing filming location, Satin Dolls in Lodi — The Sopranos
- Holsten’s in Bloomfield — The Sopranos finale
- The Asbury Park boardwalk and Convention Hall — numerous films, television programs and music productions
- Paterson locations used in Paterson and Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story
- Newark locations featured in The Many Saints of Newark, Joker and West Side Story
- Princeton University and surrounding Princeton locations
- The Great Falls in Paterson
- The Meadowlands Arena, used extensively for The Walking Dead: Dead City
- Historic Cape May
- Hoboken Terminal and the Hoboken waterfront
- The Jersey City waterfront, Hamilton Park and downtown streets
- The Meadowlands, including locations used in The Sopranos and other productions
The legislation’s sponsors specifically cited The Sopranos and Friday the 13th as examples of productions that are part of New Jersey’s screen history.
“Productions like The Sopranos and Friday the 13th are part of New Jersey’s long history in film and television, and that history continues to grow,” said Sen. Beach (D-Camden/Burlington). “By highlighting the places where memorable productions were filmed, we can celebrate our past while encouraging the next generation of filmmakers to see New Jersey as a place where their own stories can come to life.”
What does it mean for New Jersey’s movie industry?
The Film Trail is not itself a production incentive. It does not provide money to filmmakers or increase the state’s film tax credit. Its value to the industry is largely promotional and long-term.
According to the legislation, the Trail can:
- Reinforce New Jersey’s identity as a major film and television center
- Publicize the state’s variety of locations to producers and location scouts
- Demonstrate that communities value and understand production
- Keep a production economically relevant after filming ends
- Connect current studio investment with New Jersey’s film history
- Encourage towns to preserve and market recognizable locations
- Help independent filmmakers and film students see New Jersey as an industry base rather than merely a location outside New York
Because of the state’s Film and Digital Media Tax Credit Program, New Jersey reported record in-state spending from movie and TV production of approximately $833 million in 2024. This is 41% higher than 2023, and beats the previous record of $701 million in 2022. Further, $2.3 billion was spent for production studios in 2024 by Netflix, 1888 Studios/Paramount, and Lionsgate.
Benefits for Residents and Local Businesses
Residents will have a new way to explore New Jersey. Someone could follow a Sopranos itinerary through North Jersey, tour horror-film locations around Blairstown or visit Shore towns associated with particular movies.
Potential economic benefits include:
- More customers for nearby restaurants, cafés and stores
- Hotel stays connected to multiday film itineraries
- Paid tours and local-history programs
- Increased visibility for downtown business districts
- Opportunities for museums, historical societies and arts organizations
- Film-themed festivals, screenings and events
- Additional exposure for towns seeking future productions
An explicit requirement of the program is that itineraries identify nearby lodging, dining and attractions that support local businesses.
Possible drawbacks:
- Additional traffic around popular sites
- Visitors photographing or entering private property
- Parking pressure
- Wear on sensitive historic or natural locations
- Businesses becoming overwhelmed after a production becomes popular
- Confusion between an exterior filming location and a business actually depicted in the story
The private residence exclusion helps address some privacy concerns. Towns and businesses will still need signage, visitor guidelines and parking plans if a particular location becomes heavily visited.
NJ Productions Filming Now
There is no comprehensive, real-time public state production ledger. Film companies sometimes use working titles, and municipalities do not all publish permit information. As of Sept. 14, these movies are filming in NJ:
Grown Ups 3
The Netflix sequel is the most visible major movie presently in production in New Jersey. Adam Sandler, Salma Hayek Pinault, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade, Maya Rudolph, Maria Bello and Rob Schneider are among the returning cast members.
Reported New Jersey locations include:
- Colonia in Woodbridge
- The Madison Hotel and Rod’s Steak & Seafood in Morris Township
- Ridgewood
- Keansburg Amusement Park
- Runaway Rapids water park
Netflix announced in August that production was underway in New Jersey. Published production schedules indicate filming continues into October, although some New Jersey location work may finish before the overall production wraps.
Untitled Kevin Hart–Henry Cavill spy comedy
Kevin Hart and Henry Cavill are filming a Netflix action comedy directed by McG. The story concerns rival spies who unexpectedly meet in a Lamaze class and are forced to work together.
Recent reported locations include:
- Delicious Orchards in Colts Neck
- Glen Ridge
- Red Bank
The cast also reportedly includes Jason Isaacs, Justine Lupe and Aja Naomi King. The Delicious Orchards connection initially surfaced through social-media posts and a temporary closure; later filming activity was reported in Red Bank.
Enigma Variations, working title Dolce
The Netflix limited series stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson and is based on André Aciman’s novel. It filmed at Brookdale Park in Essex County in late August and on Washington and Hudson streets in Hoboken Sept. 11-12.
Alicia Vikander, Riley Keough and Sarah Pidgeon have also been associated with the adaptation. The Hoboken filming notice identified When in Rome LLC as the production company.
Discretion
This legal thriller series stars Nicole Kidman, Elle Fanning and Josh Lucas. Reported New Jersey filming locations include Southend Lofts in Hoboken and the H.A.T. Tavern in West Orange. Public reporting confirms New Jersey production activity, but a precise completion date has not been disclosed.
Cupertino
The CBS legal drama starring Mike Colter and Busy Philipps filmed in Cranford in May and at Brookside Banquets in Bloomfield later in the summer. It may still have production work underway, although I could not verify that principal photography remains active as of Sept. 14.
Let Them Die
A SAG-AFTRA casting notice seeks background performers for an independent horror feature filming at a retirement-community setting in Newton during September. This is one of the clearest indications of an active September shoot, although comparatively little has been publicly disclosed about the movie.
Major productions that recently wrapped New Jersey filming
| Production | NJ locations or regions | Reported filming period/status |
|---|---|---|
| Possession, also reported under the working title The Bureaucrat | Jersey City and other NJ locations | Filmed during July; Margaret Qualley was photographed near Hamilton Park |
| The Cackling of the Dodos | Upper Saddle River, Cranford, Ringwood, Scotch Plains | June 1-July 12 |
| Power: Origins | Fair Lawn, Passaic, Jersey City and other locations | Extended shoot reportedly concluded during summer |
| Trust the Man | Seaside Park; Charlroy Motel, boardwalk and beachfront | NJ filming completed in late July |
| An Innocent Girl | Middletown | Filmed during the first half of 2026; reported wrapped by summer |
| Rabbit, Rabbit | Middletown, including the former Circus Liquors property | Filmed from winter through early summer |
| The 99’ers | Multiple undisclosed NJ locations | Scheduled from late March through May |
| Exit Right | Ridgewood and Little Falls | Spring 2026 |
| She Gets It from Me | Cranford | Principal photography began Feb. 23; spring filming |
| Somedays | Bayonne and Cranford | January |
| Here Comes the Flood | Hoboken and Jersey City | Production continued through Jan. 22 |
| Little Brother | Bayonne and Jersey City | NJ reshoots in January |
| Denim | Wyckoff, Montclair and Parsippany | Summer NJ filming; production also planned work in Colorado |
The best-confirmed wrap dates include The Cackling of the Dodos, which filmed through July 12, and Trust the Man, whose Seaside Park work concluded in late July.
Other 2026 projects — such as Rabbit, Rabbit, An Innocent Girl, The 99’ers, Exit Right, She Gets It from Me and Somedays — have reported shooting windows that have ended, even when producers did not issue formal “that’s a wrap” announcements.
The Big Picture
The Film Trail turns New Jersey’s production history into a permanent visitor asset. A film shoot normally brings temporary crews, equipment, location fees and local spending. A successful trail could extend that economic life for years by encouraging people to return to the locations they recognize onscreen. The film markers along the trail will describe the movie, name the actors, and the production dates.
In the Greater Meadowlands Region, there are numerous sites associated with The Sopranos, The Walking Dead: Dead City and other productions with restaurants, hotels and attractions throughout Bergen and Hudson counties.
A website will be established to provide information on the film trail, including driving directions, available tours, surrounding attractions, restaurants and lodgings.
You Can Be a Star (or Your Car Can, or Your Dog…)
Anyone seeking background work can create free talent profile on Source & Cast (which handles regional rush calls for business types and commuters) or check daily listings via Backstage’s Hoboken/Jersey City Hub.
🎥 Grant Wilfley Casting (GWC) is actively casting New Jersey residents for background roles as resort goers and general townspeople for a production filming through Dec. 2026 in multiple counties across the state. Both SAG-AFTRA and non-union individuals are welcome. Talent with vehicles is especially needed.
🎥 An untitled Paramount Series is actively seeking local families (parents with kids) and tennis players for shoots around Jersey City.
🎥 An untitled Netflix spy comedy directed by McG and starring Kevin Hart and Henry Cavill, is looking for local background actors. Shooting so far has been in Glen Ridge and Colts Neck, according to media and other reports.
