Rhode Island may be the smallest state, but we’ve had a surprisingly robust presence on the big screen.
Providence streets have doubled for fictional cities. Newport mansions have stood in for Long Island estates. A former Friendly’s became a very famous burger joint. And some of Hollywood’s biggest stars — from Robert Redford and Brad Pitt to Steve Carell and Bette Midler — have filmed scenes across the Ocean State.
We visited 10 Rhode Island spots that got the Hollywood treatment.
“Hachi: A Dog’s Tale” (2009)
Woonsocket Depot at 1 Depot Square, Woonsocket
If the Woonsocket train depot looks familiar, prepare to cry.
The historic station played a major role in 2009’s “Hachi: A Dog’s Tale” starring Richard Gere. The movie, based on true events, tells the story of a remarkably loyal dog who waits at a train station each day for his owner. Woonsocket and several other Rhode Island locations stood in for the film’s New England setting. A statue of an Akita now stands outside of the train depot, commemorating the movie and celebrating the real Hachiko’s legacy.
“Good Burger 2” (2023)
Former Friendly’s at 1883 Mineral Spring Ave., North Providence
Welcome to Good Burger, home of the Good Burger — and the home of the Good Burger is apparently North Providence.
For “Good Burger 2,” filmmakers transformed a vacant former Friendly’s on Mineral Spring Avenue into the home of Ed and Dexter’s fictional fast-food restaurant. The production drew plenty of attention while Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell were filming in Rhode Island in 2023.
“Underdog” (2007)
Prospect Terrace Park at 60 Congdon St., Providence
There’s no need to fear: Rhode Island is here!
Disney’s 2007 superhero dog movie “Underdog” heavily features Providence: The Rhode Island State House appeared as the city hall of the fictional “Capital City”; Underdog saves a car from barreling down the notoriously steep College Hill and hitting a group of pedestrians; talking dogs gallivant around Benefit Street; and Underdog and his owner hang out at parks around the East Side, including at Prospect Terrace Park.
“Ella McCay” (2025)
Broadway and Almy Street in Providence’s West End
Providence got another Hollywood close-up for James L. Brooks’s “Ella McCay,” starring Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis, Woody Harrelson and New England’s own Ayo Edebiri.
The production filmed in the city and elsewhere in Rhode Island in 2024, including multiple locations in Providence’s West End and at the State House. A commercial space farther down Broadway was even temporarily transformed into a fictional neighborhood bar.
“There’s Something About Mary” (1998)
The Hot Club at 25 Bridge St., Providence
Long before Providence’s waterfront became one of the city’s most recognizable gathering places, Ben Stiller and Matt Dillon were having a beer there.
The Hot Club was featured not once, but twice in “There’s Something About Mary.” First, and most famously, when Ted Stroehmann (Stiller) meets private investigator Pat Healy (Dillon) on the patio at The Hot Club to hear what Pat supposedly discovered about Mary (Cameron Diaz). Then, Ted and his buddy Dom Woganowski (Chris Elliott) sit at the bar inside to discuss Pat’s findings. More than 25 years later, you can still grab a drink at the same bar — a plaque marks the very table where the iconic outdoor scene was filmed.
“Hocus Pocus 2” (2022)
Lakeside-Carpenter Cemetery at 150 Newman Ave., East Providence
Where better to film “Hocus Pocus 2” than at an actual New England cemetery?
The long-awaited sequel brought the Sanderson sisters to Rhode Island in 2021, with locations across the state standing in for Salem. Lakeside-Carpenter Cemetery in East Providence was used for some of the movie’s cemetery scenes.
“Meet Joe Black” (1998)
Aldrich Mansion at 836 Warwick Neck Ave., Warwick
Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins and one seriously impressive Rhode Island mansion.
The sprawling Aldrich Mansion in Warwick was the home of billionaire William Parrish, Hopkins’s character in 1998’s “Meet Joe Black.” Its grand interiors and grounds provided an appropriately lavish backdrop for the supernatural romantic drama.
“Dan in Real Life” (2007)
East Ferry Wharf, Jamestown
Steve Carell spent a lot of “Dan in Real Life” crisscrossing Rhode Island.
The 2007 romantic comedy filmed in Newport, Jamestown, Providence, Westerly and elsewhere around the state. East Ferry Wharf in Jamestown was among those locations, appearing in the film as a bookstore.
“Moonrise Kingdom” (2012)
Fort Wetherill State Park, Jamestown
Few movies make Rhode Island look quite as dreamy as Wes Anderson’s “Moonrise Kingdom.”
The 2012 film was shot extensively around Narragansett Bay, including Jamestown, Newport and South Kingstown. Fort Wetherill State Park provided one of the movie’s most memorable coastal settings: the titular secluded cove discovered by young runaways Sam and Suzy.
“The Great Gatsby” (1974)
The Elms at 367 Bellevue Ave., Newport
Robert Redford looks perfectly at home amid Newport’s Gilded Age mansions — which is probably why the city worked so well for the 1974 adaptation of “The Great Gatsby.”
There is an important bit of Hollywood trivia here: Rosecliff and Marble House are the Newport mansions documented as filming locations for the movie. But Redford was also photographed on the lawn of The Elms for promotional imagery associated with the film.
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Rhode Island’s movie résumé goes well beyond these 10 locations. “Amistad,” “27 Dresses,” “True Lies,” “The Age of Innocence,” “Outside Providence” and plenty of other productions have used the state’s mansions, shorelines, schools, historic neighborhoods and city streets as backdrops.
And with film crews continuing to come to the Ocean State, odds are another familiar Rhode Island corner will show up on screen soon. Before we know it, we’ll be seeing Little Rhody cameo in J.J. Abrams’s “The Great Beyond” starring Glenn Powell, M. Night Shyamalan’s “Remain” starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Phoebe Dynevor and “Rubber Hut,” a movie based on a real drive-thru condom shop located in Cranston during the AIDS epidemic, starring Grace Van Patten, Emmy Rossum and Michael Imperioli.
