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7 2 P E R S P E C T I V E M AY / J U N E 2 0 2 5 The Backlots and Iconic Locations Each episode featured a different mini-movie, requiring the Art Department to transform real locations into distinct cinematic worlds. We scouted everywhere—Universal, Sony, Warner Bros.—and crafted backlot stories. • The lagoon became a winter hideout for Paul Dano. • Hennesy Street became a gritty 1970s Bronx for a Ron Howard-directed Taxi Driver homage. • Olivia Wilde's Chinatown episode was set in the central New York backlot street. • A zombie apocalypse took over Warner Village, the residential area on the lot. Iconic Homes, Characters Scouting off the lot turned into an architectural tour through Hollywood. The production secured some of L.A.'s most stunning homes—many designed by Frank Lloyd Wright protégé John Lautner—as backdrops for our characters. But these weren't just locations. For The Studio, the homes were characters in their own right: iconic, singular and built on a scale that matched the personalities we were crafting. I looked for spaces that felt as one-of-a-kind as our characters—homes with sweeping views, bold lines, and an openness that invited both movement and meaning. Places where you could make a dramatic entrance…or disappear in plain sight. These houses were designed to make you feel on top of the world—because, for a moment at least, our characters often are. And then it shifts. That tension—between confidence and vulnerability, power and privacy, ambition and escape—made these homes such a perfect fit. Studio head Matt Remick lived in the Foster Carling Residence—a Lautner-designed bachelor pad that feels like a futuristic yacht. The series' "oner" episode was filmed at Silvertop, another Lautner masterpiece, and we gave Patty, the recently ousted studio head, the Harvey House. A favorite moment was filming inside a Lautner home I'd hiked past for years. Our extraordinary location manager, Stacey Brashear, left a letter at the door. Miraculously, they said yes—and we took over the house for five days of filming. There was no faking these locations. Their presence grounded the fictional Continental Studios in a very real Hollywood. Zac Efron throws a party at the Château Marmont. Olivia Wilde directs a scene in Lake Hollywood Park beneath the sign. Matt meets Scorsese at the Hollywood Roosevelt Penthouse and gets kicked out of Charlize Theron's party at The Spare Room. Later, he attends a gala at the Wilshire Ebell and riffs on all the films shot there. And, of course, our version of the Golden Globes was staged in the very place it happens every year: the Beverly Hilton. Recreating the Golden Globes (In 24 Hours!) The biggest challenge? The awards show. I had never designed an awards show before, so I called Brian Stonestreet, one of the best in the business, for advice. His biggest tip: Keep it simple, use light and let the design breathe. That was invaluable because we had less than twelve hours to dress the exterior and only four days to shoot in the ballroom. A big shout-out to our friends, Alana Billingsley, John Zuiker and Margaux Lapresle, for their awards show expertise and to Assistant Art Director Ryan Grossheim for keeping us on track! To pull it off, we A B A. BACKLOT CHINATOWN STREET FOR THE FILM NOIR EPISODE. WARNER BROS. NEW YORK STREET. SET PHOTO. B. THE HOUSE FOR THE "ONER" EPISODE WAS THE REINER-BURCHILL RESIDENCE (SILVERTOP) BY ARCHITECT JOHN LAUTNER. LOCATION PHOTO. C. MATT'S HOUSE, THE FOSTER CARLING RESIDENCE BY ARCHITECT JOHN LAUTNER. LOCATION PHOTO. D. GOLDEN GLOBES "RED" CARPET ENTRANCE ON LOCATION AT THE BEVERLY HILTON HOTEL. SET PHOTO. E. GOLDEN GLOBES STAGE, ON LOCATION AT THE BEVERLY HILTON HOTEL. PRODUCTION STILL. COURTESY OF APPLE.