Naman Shrestha
Adapted from Lily Houghton’s stage play titled ‘Of the Women Came the Beginning of Sin, and Through Her We All Die,’ ‘Forbidden Fruits’ acquaints us with a group of three young women — Apple, Cherry, and Fig — employed at a chic clothing store called Free Edem at the Highland Place Mall in Dallas, Texas. During their shift, they scam people into purchasing thousands of dollars’ worth of items from their store. At night, they are part of a secret witchy femme cult led by Apple in the basement of their store.
When the clique is approached by another young mall employee, Pumpkin, who works at a pretzel shop, they give her a chance to become part of their secretive sisterhood by putting her through a series of tests and spooky rituals. After Pumpkin joins the group, she forces them to confront their inner demons, causing a bloody conflict within the cult. Helmed by Meredith Alloway, the dark comedy-horror movie features a talented ensemble cast comprising Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung, Victoria Pedretti, Alexandra Shipp, Emma Chamberlain, and Gabrielle Union. The unsettling tale unfolds mostly at Highland Place Mall, where young clothing store employees lead a kind of double life.
Forbidden Fruits Filming Locations
Although ‘Forbidden Fruits’ is set in Dallas, Texas, the production was conducted primarily in Ontario, especially in and around Toronto. According to reports, principal photography for the comedy-horror movie was completed over about 19 days, between the second week of March and the first week of April 2025. As the premiere date approached, Ashley Iris Gill, a camera operator, took to social media and recounted her experience on set. She stated, “I really couldn’t have asked for a better team, or a more lovely cast than the ones on this. Much love to dp @eyeliquid for bringing me out on this ride, @atwwalloway for being such a good director and fashion killa. The cast, @lilireinhart , @lola.tung , @alexandrashipppp and @then0t0ri0usvip for their talent and for making me laugh every day. I could go on forever but you get itttttt.”
Toronto, Ontario
Almost the entirety of ‘Forbidden Fruits’ was reportedly lensed in the city of Toronto, which doubled as Dallas, Texas. In order to depict the fictional Highland Place Mall where Apple, Cherry, Fig, and Pumpkin work, the production team set up camp at CF Sherway Gardens at 25 The West Mall in Toronto’s Etobicoke district, and transformed various areas of the 1,182,000-square-foot shopping mall into film sets. As per reports, they turned the set lights on mostly at night, leaving the cast and crew members no other choice but to become nocturnal together and form close friendships in real life.
Several spots within the mall feature in the backdrops, including the Center Atrium, an abandoned Nike store, a bathroom near the Alo store, the Food Court, and the American Eagle store. Apart from ‘Forbidden Fruits,’ Toronto has served as a prominent production location for many movies and TV shows over the years. Some of the notable ones include ‘Ready or Not 2: Here I Come,’ ‘American Psycho,’ ‘The Invisible Man,’ ‘This Is Not a Test,’ ‘Dawn of the Dead,’ ‘What We Do in the Shadows,’ and ‘It: Welcome to Derry.’
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