Where was The Dead Don't Die filmed? All shooting locations explored

The Dead Don't Die is a 2019 dystopian fantasy thriller written and directed by Jim Jarmusch. Starring Bill Murray and Adam Driver, the film takes a deadpan, humorous approach to the zombie apocalypse genre while serving as a social commentary on consumerism.

Set in the small, fictional town of Centerville, The Dead Don't Die chronicles the chaos and destruction in the aftermath of the zombie uprising. In addition to Murray and Driver, the film features a star-studded cast including Chloë Sevigny, Tilda Swinton, Tom Waits, Selena Gomez, and Austin Butler, among others.

The movie initially debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2019 and had a theatrical release in North America on June 14, 2019. It was filmed in various locations across upstate New York, capturing the small-town, rural vibe needed for Centerville. Read along for details on specific shooting locations for the movie.

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All The Dead Don't Die filming locations

Fleischmanns, New York, USA

The motel featured in the movie (Image via YouTube/Focus Features)

Fleischmanns is a small village in Middletown situated in the Delaware County of New York state. Many of the primary locations seen in The Dead Don't Die, like the motel, police station, funeral home, and street scenes, were filmed here.

The fictional Moonlight Motel, where Ronnie Peterson (Adam Driver) and Chief Cliff Robertson (Bill Murray) meet the young traveler Zoe (Selena Gomez), is actually the Delaware Court Motel in Fleischmanns. The duo also encounters a multitude of dead bodies at this motel, taking the story forward.

Another location from Fleischmanns that makes an appearance in The Dead Don't Die is the Cornerstone Bible Baptist Church Cemetery. It plays a pivotal role in the movie as it's revealed to be the burial site of the zombies.

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Elizaville, New York, USA

The cast of the movie at Cannes (Image via Getty)

The very first scenes of The Dead Don't Die feature a diner where two characters are murdered by zombies, setting up the start of the story. The Elizaville Deli, located at 573 Kerley Corners Rd, in Elizaville, New York, served as the exterior for this diner.

Built in the year 1956, the diner has undergone multiple renovations over the years and has become a popular tourist spot in the city. Originally known as the Eatwell Diner, the restaurant has moved across three state lines from its first location in Lebanon, PA.

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Ancram, New York, USA

The inside scenes of the diner in The Dead Don't Die were shot in the West Taghkanic Diner in Ancram, New York. The vintage diner is located 11 miles from the Elizaville diner and is currently closed for renovations, according to its official website.

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Margaretville, New York, USA

Another prominent New York village that is part of the movie is Margaretville, situated in Delaware County. The Margaretville school was used as the juvenile detention facility in the film.

Margaretville village and its surrounding areas have previously served as the filming location for Julian Po, You Can Count on Me, Stake Land, and the music video of Sugar, We're Goin Down by Fall Out Boy.

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What is The Dead Don't Die about?

The official logline for the movie on Netflix reads,

"A celestial event raises the dead in the placid town of Centerville, where the police chief and his deputy struggle to keep things under control."

The zombie apocalypse in The Dead Don't Die happens when the Earth’s rotation is thrown off its axis due to polar fracking. The local police officers and various quirky townspeople try their best to deal with the escalating crisis, creating an absurdist, humorous, and classic dystopian fantasy.

The movie received mixed reviews on its release and grossed around $15 million worldwide. It was produced by Carter Logan and Joshua Astrachan and distributed by Focus Features in the United States.

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The Dead Don't Die is now streaming on Netflix.