Where Was 'Severance' Filmed? All the Apple TV+ Series' Real-Life Locations, Explained -

A lot of what makes Severance such a compelling and enticing watch is its ambiance. The series draws a lot on the concept of liminality — transitory spaces that seem like they don’t fit into reality, giving off an eerie and uncanny atmosphere. While most of this is connected to the severed floor, which was completely shot in studio, Severance also uses many real-world locations that were scouted by production designer Jeremy Hindle and director Ben Stiller. Coupled with the superb cinematography that the series is known for, these places help make the series’ signature mind-bending settings a reality.

Bell Works in Holmdel, New Jersey

Image via AppleTV+

Lumon Branch 501 is the most iconic exterior location in Severance, and while the town of Kier, PE is completely fictional, the building itself is not. Known as Bell Works since 2013, the building in Holmdel, NJ is home to a variety of office spaces, restaurants, and stores. However, in its heyday, it was known as Bell Laboratories and housed AT&T’s research divisions. Countless scientific discoveries were made there, including the technologies behind the laser and cell phones, and even the Big Bang Theory itself. A total of nine Nobel Prizes were won by researchers working at Bell Labs, but it also witnessed its fair share of fraudulent experiments.

Designed by architect Eero Saarinen and regarded as the “Industrial Versailles,” the building itself is used in Severance mostly for main floor, exterior, parking lot, and above-ground shots, as well as corridors and balconies. Many things had to be adapted or changed with CGI to build the impersonal, sterile Lumon atmosphere, including colors, like Lumon’s signature dark green, and the huge carving of Kier Eagan’s (Marc Geller) profile on a concrete wall on the first floor. This mix of futuristic looks and innovative past makes Bell Works the perfect place for Lumon’s headquarters.

Westchester County, New York

Ricken and Devon's house seen from below at dusk — Image via AppleTV+

Another iconic Severance real-world location is Ricken (Michael Chernus) and Devon’s (Jen Tullock) house. Known as the Bier House, it’s located in the Usonia Historic District in Pleasantville, NY, and was designed by architect Kaneji Domoto, a disciple of Frank Lloyd Wright. It was built between 1948 and 1956, and its name comes from the original owners, Arthur and Gertrude Bier. The Bier House is also seen in the 2015 movie 3 Generations, starring Elle Fanning.

Pleasantville is located in Westchester County, where two other Severance locations can be found. In Season 1, Mark Scout (Adam Scott) and Ms. Cobel (Patricia Arquette) attend Petey’s (Yul Vazquez) funeral, which was filmed in the Lutheran Trinity Church in White Plains. Also, Mark later meets Petey in a greenhouse at Sprainbrook Nursery in Scarsdale, also in Westchester County.

Ulster County, New York

Adam Scott and Jen Tullock sit across from each other at a booth in a diner in Severance. — Image via Apple TV+

The state of New York is a prominent location for filming Severance, and three places in Ulster County make for iconic places in the series. One is Pip’s Bar & Grille, filmed at Phoenicia Diner. The restaurant had to be briefly closed to film scenes like Mark and Petey having their first encounter in Season 1, and Mark and Devon discussing the events of the first season finale in early Season 2; it was promptly reopened afterward.

Another location is Minnewaska State Park Preserve, where Dieter Eagan National Forest was filmed. The waterfall at Woe’s Hollow, seen in the series, is the park’s Awosting Falls, and, contrary to what Mr. Milchick (Tramell Tillman) says, it’s not the world’s tallest, unfortunately. Finally, Damona Birthing Retreat, where Devon gives birth in Season 1, was filmed in New Paltz, using the Mohonk Testimonial Gatehouse for exterior shots; it was also featured in the 1985 cult horror movie The Stuff. (The birthing cabin was later replicated in-studio for the Season 2 scenes in which Mark converses with his innie via camcorder.)

Nyack, New York

Mark Scout's house and car in Baird Creek Manor, both covered by snow — Image via AppleTV+

Mark and Ms. Cobel both live in Lumon’s Baird Creek Manor housing development in Kier, a neighborhood that “never filled up,” according to Mark. This neighborhood was filmed in the Village Gate Townhouses in Nyack, NY, around 30 miles from New York City. Another location in town is the Hudson House, where Mark and Alexa (Nikki M. James) have dinner as part of their terrible date in Season 1. According to Time Out, other locations used in Severance include the gas station where Petey is arrested and the Two Villains Brewery.

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The Ricken Ricken is.

Marine Park Golf Course in Brooklyn, New York

The Mammalians Nurturable department in Severance, a wide room with green hill and countless baby goats — Image via AppleTV+

In Season 1, Mark S. and Helly R. (Britt Lower) stumble upon the famous Goat Room on the Severed Floor, and in Season 2, we get a proper look at what is really going on there: it’s the Mammalians Nurturable department. What may surprise people is that, although it looks like a closed space, the scene was actually filmed at a golf course in Brooklyn, NY: the Marine Park Golf Course. Series production had to set up a tent around a part of the course, and later used CGI to add the inner walls and ceiling of the department. All the baby goats are real, by the way.

Kingston, New York

Irving (John Turturro) sitting on a bench at a park in Leonora Lake — Image via AppleTV+

The town of Kingston, NY features heavily in Severance, with many shots of the town serving as downtown Kier. Places like Cornell Park and the Waterfront at the Strand serve as the location for Irving Bailiff’s (John Turturro) apartment at Lumon’s Leonora Lake housing development. Another location is the Midtown Arts District; the Red Owl Collective serves as the exterior of the Great Doors factory, where Dylan George (Zach Cherry) interviews for a job in Season 2, and Eng’s Restaurant serves as the location for Zufu, the Chinese restaurant where Helena Eagan meets Mark, also in Season 2. Other locations, like the Rondout Train Trestle and the Kingston–Port Ewen Suspension Bridge, are also featured throughout the series.

Beacon, New York

Another town that serves as many exterior locations for downtown Kier is Beacon, NY. The Beacon building on Main Street, for example, serves as the Hall of Records in Kier, where Mark confronts the Whole Mind Collective during his terrible date with Alexa in Season 1. According to the Poughkeepsie Journal, many other places in town are also featured in the series, mainly with storefronts being renamed to serve as background for downtown Kier.

Yonkers, New York

In Season 1, the Macrodata Refiners visit the full-scale replica of Kier Eagan’s house in the Perpetuity Wing. This is another place that feels like a studio, but it’s actually a real place. As Severance production designer Jeremy Hindle mentions, the replica was simply too big to be built in a studio, so, instead, this scene was shot in the 1877 Gilded Age Glenview House in the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers, NY. According to Atlas of Wonders, another Yonkers location that is featured in the series is the neighborhood of Pietro Drive.

Both seasons of Severance are available to stream on Apple TV+.