The Handmaid's Tale is primarily filmed in Ontario, Canada, with Toronto serving as the main hub for most scenes. Key filming locations in Toronto include:
- Yonge-Dundas Square, which represents Gilead's version of Times Square.
- The University of Toronto, used for government facilities and hospital scenes.
- Toronto City Hall, appearing in several shots.
- Woodbine Beach, depicted as "The Wall" with hanging bodies in Season 1.
- The R.C. Harris Water Treatment Plant, often used for scenes involving mass punishments or tense standoffs due to its post-apocalyptic architecture
Other notable Ontario locations used in the series are:
- Scarborough Bluffs in Toronto, featured in scenes where handmaids are marched along the shoreline.
- Hamilton, where Hamilton City Hall stood in for the Red Center, the training and reprogramming facility for handmaids.
- Uxbridge, providing forested trails and farmlands used as escape routes for the underground resistance.
- Niagara-on-the-Lake, transformed into a chilling shopping district under Gilead's regime.
- Cambridge, including the Main Street Bridge and estates used for various scenes.
- St. George, Ontario, where Sunnyside Mansion was used as Commander Lawrence's house
Additionally, some scenes were filmed at Cinespace Film Studios in Toronto, and other Ontario towns like Oshawa and Burlington have also been used for specific scenes
. While the show is mainly filmed in Canada, there are some scenes filmed in the United States, such as in Durham, North Carolina, but these are exceptions rather than the norm
. In summary, The Handmaid's Tale is predominantly filmed in Toronto and surrounding areas in Ontario, Canada, utilizing a variety of urban and rural locations to create the dystopian world of Gilead.
