Where was Eleanor the Great filmed? Complete guide to all filming locations and other production details

Eleanor the Great is an American drama film released on September 26, 2025, which is Scarlett Johansson's directorial debut. The film is written by Tory Kamen and features June Squibb as Eleanor Morgenstein, Erin Kellyman, Jessica Hecht, and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

The film is about a 94-year-old woman from Florida who becomes fast friends with a New York City teenager in an unusual friendship that bridges loss, memory, and intergenerational bond.

The movie opened at the Cannes Film Festival on May 20, 2025, in the Un Certain Regard section, prior to its theatrical release on September 26, 2025. Released in North America by Sony Pictures Classics and internationally by TriStar Pictures.

Eleanor the Great was filmed primarily in New York City, with Coney Island as a key location, and wrapped production in April 2024.

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Filming and production details of Eleanor the Great explored

Eleanor the Great (Image Via Sony Pictures Classics)

Principal photography on Eleanor the Great started in February 2024 and was conducted in New York City, with Coney Island being one of the main filming locations as reported by Celebmafia on 26 February 2024.

Filming in the congested area wasn't without its challenges, especially as the production had to schedule around June Squibb, who was 94 years old at the time of filming. The crew needed to precariously weigh the challenges of filming in a busy city life against the comfort and health of its star actress.

Shooting concluded in April 2024 after a couple of months of filming throughout New York City. The filming locations were selected to mirror Eleanor's inner journey, with the cityscape environment underscoring the themes of transformation and interconnectedness in the film. There were also real Holocaust survivors who appeared in support group scenes within some of the scenes, providing authenticity to a plot thread associated with Eleanor's past.

Johansson and her team collaborated closely with the USC Shoah Foundation to make sure accuracy and sensitivity pervaded during these scenes as per a report by Deadline on May 12, 2025.

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More details on Eleanor the Great explored

Eleanor the Great took years to make before filming started. Tory Kamen, the screenwriter, had worked eight years to get the story made, terming it a small, character-driven movie that various studios did not want to fund.

Johansson stumbled on the script with Celine Rattray of Maven Screen Media and was touched by it. She then commented that the script brought tears to her eyes, something that happens to her very infrequently, and that she was reminded of the independent films she loved in the 1990s, including Crossing Delancey and Living Out Loud as reported by Deadline on May 12, 2025.

The Deadline report further stated that Scarlett Johansson had already indicated a desire to direct as early as 1998 when, at the age of 12, she watched Robert Redford work on the set of The Horse Whisperer. For her, Eleanor the Great was the perfect project to finally get behind the camera.

She had complete creative control, assisted by These Pictures co-founders Jonathan Lia and Keenan Flynn, who co-produced alongside her. Pinky Promise, a female-owned production company, also offered backing, as did cinematographer Hélène Louvart, who joined to define the look of the film.

The casting of June Squibb in the central role was deemed necessary by Johansson, who desired an actress strong enough to bear Eleanor's weight in emotional terms.

She is joined in the cast by Erin Kellyman as Nina, Jessica Hecht as Lisa, Chiwetel Ejiofor as Roger, Rita Zohar as Bessie, and Will Price as Max. Johansson's choice to incorporate actual Holocaust survivors within the telling also spoke to her dedication to keeping the story rooted in real-life occurrences, raising the project even further.

Following its wrap of production in April 2024, Eleanor the Great was slated for Cannes the next spring.

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Eleanor the Great was released in theatres on September 26, 2025.