From Forrest Gump in Forsyth Park to The Last Song on Tybee Island, explore iconic Savannah filming locations featured in Hollywood movies.
Savannah has long been a favorite backdrop for Hollywood. With moss-draped oaks, cobblestone squares, and Tybee Island just a short drive away, the city has doubled as everything from small-town America to picturesque waterfronts. If you’ve ever wanted to walk in the footsteps of Forrest Gump or stand where Miley Cyrus filmed The Last Song, here’s a look at just a few of the many filming locations you can explore around town.
Probably Savannah’s most famous movie moment is Forrest sitting on that bench, telling his life story to strangers. The bench was originally placed in Chippewa Square, right in the heart of downtown. While the prop bench itself now lives in the Savannah History Museum, you can still visit Chippewa Square and imagine the cameras rolling. Nearby, you’ll recognize the background streets from various scenes throughout the film.
This Nicholas Sparks story brought Miley Cyrus to Tybee Island, and much of the movie was filmed right along the shoreline. A church was specially constructed on Tybee for the production, and while it was originally meant to be torn down, it still stands today - a bit of movie history tucked away by the marsh. Fans will also recognize beach scenes and the oceanfront house used in the film, both located on Tybee. If you head out for a beach day, it’s fun to picture the crew filming in the same sand.
Yes, that Baywatch, starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Zac Efron, was filmed on Tybee Island. The wide, sunny beaches made the perfect stand-in for California. Locals might remember production crews taking over sections of the beach, and you can still walk those same stretches of sand where slow-motion runs were filmed.
Based on John Berendt’s book, this Clint Eastwood-directed film is practically a love letter to Savannah. The Mercer-Williams House on Monterey Square is central to the story, and you can tour it today. Bonaventure Cemetery, with its famous live oaks and historic graves, also plays a role. Even just walking through downtown squares, you’ll spot places featured in the movie.
For Ford v Ferrari, Hutchinson Island was turned into the legendary Le Mans race track. Large stretches of pavement near the river were re-imagined as the Circuit de la Sarthe, with crews building signage and set pieces to make Savannah look like 1960s France. It’s where Matt Damon and Christian Bale filmed some of the movie’s high-speed race sequences, showing how Savannah can double as an international backdrop when the right location is needed.
The original Longest Yard starring Burt Reynolds filmed parts of its production in Savannah. While the majority of the movie was shot at Georgia State Prison in Reidsville, scenes in and around Savannah added to the film’s authentic Southern backdrop. As one of the earlier major productions tied to the city, it helped establish Savannah as a destination for filmmakers long before the boom of more recent decades.
Jamie Lee Curtis’s farewell as Laurie Strode brought the Halloween franchise to Savannah. Production used neighborhoods across town for those eerie suburban shots, with some sequences filmed in and around Pooler as well. Local residents might remember seeing houses decked out in pumpkins long before October.
Will Smith’s Gemini Man had filming locations across Georgia, but Savannah grabbed a few key scenes of its own. Wright Square was one of them, putting downtown’s historic backdrop on display in the middle of the action. Across town, the quiet neighborhood of Isle of Hope offered something different, with oak-lined streets and marsh views that stood out on screen.
Between its historic architecture, coastal scenery, and wide-open filming incentives, Savannah continues to draw filmmakers of all kinds. Next time you’re downtown or out on Tybee, keep an eye out. You might be standing in the exact spot where Hollywood once yelled, “Action!”
