With the many movies and shows filmed in Ontario over the years, we'd believe you if you told us that you've spotted Hollywood stars roaming the streets of your neighbourhood before, or caught a behind-the-scenes glimpse of a major film in the making.
However, you may not recognize some of the more unusual Ontario spots that secretly appeared in famous productions, like the abandoned psychiatric ward used in an Oscar-winning movie directed by Guillermo del Toro.
"Ontario is rich with filming locations, as it is home to a wide range of natural splendor and architectural looks. Our ability to double for virtually any look makes us an attractive destination for film production," said Justin Cutler, Ontario film commissioner at Ontario Creates to Narcity.
Ontario Creates filled Narcity in on some of the local spots used in shows and movies that are a little more unconventional than Dundas Square.
Diefenbunker Blast Tunnel
Ontario Creates | Queens Printer
This Ottawa tunnel was originally used to diffuse the blasts of potential nuclear explosions in the Cold War era, making it the perfect place to film Ben Affleck and Morgan Freeman's 2002 film, The Sum of All Fears.
Playing a CIA analyst, Affleck is tasked with stoking the flames between the U.S. and Russia to get one of the countries to set off a nuclear weapon at a football game, according to IMDb.
Stelco Steel
Stelco is a steel company based in Hamilton, which Ontario Creates says has been used in productions before. It was apparently featured in Season 3, episode six of the Star Trek: Discovery series, called Scavengers, according to Movie Maps.
Kingston Penitentiary
Ontario Creates | Queens Printer
This penitentiary is Canada's oldest maximum-security prison, according to Kingston Penitentiary Tours. Even though this prison shut its doors in 2013, Ontario Creates told Narcity that it has been used to film DC Universe's TV series, Titans. Some of the show's cast members have recently been spotted in downtown Toronto.
Elora Quarry
Ontario Creates | Queens Printer
Stephen King fans may be able to pick out this film location in the 2017 movie adaptation, It, which starred Vancouver's very own Finn Wolfhard. The Elora Quarry Conservation Area is about a 25-minute drive from Guelph and was just one of the many filming locations used in It, which was shot mostly in Port Hope, Ontario.
St. Thomas Psychiatric Hospital
This former 1930s psychiatric hospital in St. Thomas was used to help patients with mental health issues and was a source of employment during the Great Depression, according to CTV News.
Screenwriter Guillermo del Toro and director André Øvredal used the St. Thomas Psychiatric Hospital to film the 2019 horror movie, Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark.
It's not the only former psychiatric hospital in Ontario that's been turned into a set. Humber College's Lakeshore Campus was once a psychiatric hospital before it became a college campus, and IMDb reports that the school has housed several films and television shows like Goosebumps and Urban Legend.
Elgin and Winter Garden Theatre
Ontario Creates | Queens Printer
Guillermo del Toro seems to be a fan of filming in Ontario, as he selected this renowned Yonge Street theatre to be one of the filming locations for The Shape of Water. The film won four academy awards in 2018 including Best Picture and Best Director, according to IMDb.