Sweet Tooth is a Netflix series based on a book that tells a dystopic tale of life after the apocalypse developed by Jeff Lemire. In this tale, humanity was wiped out by a pandemic, and the beginning of that outbreak kicked off with the appearance over the face of the earth of semi-human creatures that had animal traits. Over the course of the series, we meet Gus, a part human, part elk character, and his dad, who have lived out in the sticks.
When Gus’s dad bites the dust, he must go out and traverse the world; in his journey, he meets up with several characters in hopes of finding a safe haven from the blight of humanity, that pandemic called “The Great Crumble”. While the book takes place in North America, you’d be surprised to know where the cast and crew actually went to film the scenes of Netflix’s Sweet Tooth, and that’s the focus of our story today.
Where Is Sweet Tooth Filmed?
While the story from which the series takes inspiration tells readers that the events take place in Yellowstone and the northwestern United States, the fact of the matter is that the producers chose another corner of the world with the same beautiful sceneries to give life to this production, case in point, we have to move to New Zealand, a country whose government has put out economic reforms that make it attractive for filmmakers to go and conduct business there.
With the advent of the COVID pandemic, the country was in desperate need of income revenue, so they decided to soften the travel restrictions so big companies like movie producers and the like could film there, and the government collected some revenue out of it.
As such, Sweet Tooth began filming in the mid-2020s, but by September 2020, the filming of the debut season had to stop and was resumed in December of that year. After the pandemic, the second and third seasons were filmed on location without any hassles.
Queenstown
Located in Otago, New Zealand, Queenstown is a town between The Remarkables mountain range and Lake Wakatipu. It is often frequented by tourists because of its natural appeal. It’s known as one of New Zealand’s top adventure destinations. Furthermore, the town has breathtaking vistas and a unique atmosphere, and it was originally inhabited by the Maoris. After the 19th century, explorers settled there, starting gold mining towns all over the Shotover River.
As the gold rush waned, Queenstown eventually became a very popular tourist spot. It’s here where the producers decided to film several of the scenes you see in Sweet Tooth, the tranquil ambiance, coupled with the scenarios, gives Queenstown a local spot for shooting outdoor and indoor scenes.
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Auckland
With its iconic landmarks —like the Sky Tower, the Harbor Bridge, and Rangitoto Island— as well as a vibrant cultural scene, Auckland, New Zealand, is a prime destination for film producers. Not only is the Ministry of Economy bolstering and fostering productions there, but the possibilities for developing a well-embarked film or series, like in the case of Sweet Tooth, are prime.
The Advantage Of Auckland As A Film Location
As a testimony of how good Auckland a film location is that movies like The Lord of The Rings, Evil Dead, the 2010 series Spartacus, and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Witch, The Lion, and The Wardrobe were also shot there.
As such, with those diverse landscapes of city, mountain, and forest all in close proximity, a film crew can easily move to and fro without any hassles, factor in the good weather conditions and the experienced local talent, and as a producer, you got yourself a winning combo, that’s one of the reasons why Robert Downey Jr. and Jim Mickle picked this spot for doing Sweet Tooth.
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