Naman Shrestha
The revival and spin-off of ‘Leverage,’ Prime Video’s ‘Leverage: Redemption’ is an action crime series created by John Rogers and Chris Downey. It revolves around the reunion of the Leverage team — the Hitter, the Hacker, the Thief, and the Grifter — a year after Nate Ford’s demise. As his widow, Sophie Devereaux, rejoins Eliot Spencer, Alec Hardison, and Parker, they also welcome a lawyer named Harry Wilson into the team amidst a threat from a new villain.
Upon Harry’s insistence, the team decides to work together again and conduct elaborate sting operations to take down the rich and powerful. Working from their new Leverage Consulting office in New Orleans, they also focus on helping those in need of justice. Starring Gina Bellman, Christian Kane, Beth Riesgraf, Aleyse Shannon, and Noah Wyle, the thriller show unfolds across the bustling streets of New Orleans, adding more depth to the narrative.
Leverage Redemption Filming Locations
‘Leverage: Redemption’ is filmed in its entirety in Louisiana, primarily across New Orleans, with a few portions taped in Kenner and Gretna. The production for the debut season of the revival series was slated to begin around June 2020 before it was pushed to July and then to August, mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, shooting began in August 2020 and concluded in April 2021. As for the filming of the sophomore season, it seemingly took place between April and July 2022. According to reports, principal photography for the third round got underway in January 2024 and continued for about four months before getting wrapped up in May of the same year.
New Orleans, Louisiana
A majority of ‘Leverage: Redemption’ was reportedly lensed in different areas of the city of New Orleans, which is situated along the Mississippi River. One of the directors, writers, and producers of the show, Dean Devlin, explained why the Crescent City served as an ideal filming destination for the show. He told NOLA, “New Orleans has such a storied history on both sides of the law that it seemed the perfect place where bad guys can be good guys.” First and foremost, the properties at 514 and 515 Madison Street served as the Leverage Headquarters and Tina Reynolds’ residence, respectively. Furthermore, while Sophie’s house was located at 2835 Esplanade Avenue, the Bradford and Petitpas Houses were at 1741 Coliseum Street and 405 Park Boulevard, respectively.
To capture the scenes set in Joseph Cheng Mansion, the filming unit chose 11 Island Club Drive. From what we can tell, an airplane hangar was also utilized during the production. Several spots were turned into film sets across New Orleans, including Madison Street between Chartres & Decatur, Poe Street between Andrew Higgins & John Churchill Chase, 6401 Stars and Stripes Boulevard, and the Jefferson Davis Monument at the intersection of Canal Street and Jefferson Davis Parkway. The English Turn Golf & Country Club at 1 Clubhouse Drive doubled as the Branchbrier Golf Course, while the New Canal Lighthouse at 8001 Lakeshore Drive represented The Beacon Inn. The New Orleans Museum of Art at 1 Collins Diboll Circle stood in for the Southern Louisiana Civil Court as well as the Boston Museum of Art.
The production team of ‘Leverage: Redemption’ took over multiple establishments in the city, such as the Louisiana Cancer Research Center at 1700 Tulane Avenue, Metropolitan Night Club at 310 Andrew Higgins Boulevard, Messina’s at the Terminal at 6001 Stars and Stripes Boulevard, The Quarter Smith at 519 Street Louis Street, 400 Poydras Tower at 400 Poydras Street #1500, Longue Vue House & Gardens at 7 Bamboo Road, and seemingly Tout de Suite Cafe at 347 Verret Street. In addition, the Axios Tower seen in the show is the Poydras Center Office Tower at 650 Poydras St #2750. Warren’s Corner on Olivier Street (permanently closed) doubled for The Falcon & Turtle in the crime series. Meanwhile, the Steamboat Natchez at 400 Toulouse Street was turned into The Mississippi Pearl.
The cast and crew members of ‘Leverage: Redemption’ were also spotted taping pivotal exterior sequences at different parks — Woldenberg Park at 1 Canal Street, Dreyfous Meadow (City Park) on Dreyfous Drive, and Lafayette Square on South Maestri Street. The neighborhood of Algiers Point also reportedly hosted the production of the thriller show. In an interview with Variety, Gina Bellman, who portrays Sophie Devereaux, acknowledged the efforts of the design departments. She stated, “I think one of the other things we’ve got to give kudos to are all of the design departments because we’ve got such an incredible set designer and costume designer. They were really able to kind of create these worlds because they’re standalone episodes and we enter different worlds. In every episode, they made these worlds feel so lavish, and obviously they were restricted in terms of spaces and how many extras we could have. But everyone did a phenomenal, phenomenal job.”
Other Locations in Louisiana
For the purpose of shooting, the production team also traveled to other locations in Louisiana. It seems that they also utilized the Elmwood sound stage at Electric Entertainment Studios, situated at 5301 Jefferson Highway in Elmwood, just outside New Orleans. Not only is it home to three purpose-built sound stages, but the film studio also consists of several loading docks, numerous spacious production offices, and ample parking space. The city of Kenner served as another shooting destination for ‘Leverage: Redemption.’ You can spot quite a few popular places in different scenes, such as Louis J. Roussel, Jr. Laser Planetarium at 2020 4th Street and Porch & Patio at 512 Williams Boulevard.
A parking lot scene was reportedly lensed at Rivertown’s Heritage Park at 2000 Reverend Richard Wilson Drive. Meanwhile, the Heritage Hall at 303 Williams Boulevard doubled as the Kenner Public Library in the series. For taping the scenes set at the Arlo Police Department, the filming team set up camp in and around the Gretna City Hall at 740 2nd Street in the city of Gretna. A few important scenes were also shot in Common Grounds Coffee House & Cafe at 335 Huey P Long Avenue in Gretna.
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