Sugar Grove couple cast as extras in Netflix movie filmed in downtown St. Charles

Over the years, Denise and Jack Feltes have appeared as extras in a number of television shows and movies.

Now the Sugar Grove couple hopes the scenes shot in downtown St. Charles recently for the upcoming Netflix noir thriller “The Killer” will make the cut as well. The couple along with their cars – she owns a burgundy Ford Fusion and he owns a burgundy Honda CR-V – were part of the recently filming of the movie in downtown St. Charles.

“The Killer” was filmed at night and they were part of two long nights of filming. On the first night of filming, they worked from 6 p.m. until 5:30 a.m. the next day.

They did what they needed to do to prepare for such a long night.

“We took naps beforehand,” Denise Feltes said. “We knew we had to adjust our sleep schedule. And then we had plenty of caffeine. They serve you coffee and hot cocoa.”

The film stars Michael Fassbender, known for playing the character Magneto in the “X-Men” movies. He plays a contract killer in the movie, which is based on a French graphic novel.

Actress Tilda Swinton also is part of the cast. Paris, New Orleans and the Dominican Republic also are serving as backdrops for the movie.

The movie is being filmed by award winning director David Fincher, known for such films as “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Gone Girl” and “Fight Club.” During the time the couple was on the set, scenes were being filmed both inside the Hotel Baker and right outside of it.

Much of the filming took place at the historic Hotel Baker, which was built in 1928 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The couple was also part of scenes on the Main Street Bridge and near the Arcada Theatre.

During the filming, Denise Feltes caught a glimpse of Swinton.

“She was coming out of the hotel,” Feltes said. “She was dressed in a white outfit and she got into this white Cadillac. That was one of the first scenes. The second scene they did was her in the white Cadillac pulling up to the hotel and getting out of the car and going into the hotel. They did that scene probably 30 different times. They would shoot it from one angle and then they would have to shoot from another angle.”

She also got to meet the director.

“When they finished shooting the scenes that they needed to, they told us to line our cars up in front of the Hotel Baker,” Denise Feltes said. “We were heading east. And the director went through and picked out eight or nine different cars they wanted for a scene. And my car was one of those cars.”

The scenes they were in were set in New York.

“They had New York fake license plates that they put on our cars,” Denise Feltes said. “Who knows if you even see the license plates in any of the scenes, but they got very specific.”

The family is used to being in the eye of a camera, including being extras on the television show “Chicago Fire.” Denise Feltes also was an extra on the television show “The Big Leap.”

In addition, Jack Feltes made an appearance as a pallbearer in the 2018 movie “Widows” starring Viola Davis.

“We were watching a commercial for the movie and there he was,” she said. “The first scene in the commercial was at a funeral and my husband played a pallbearer. We were just watching TV and we were like, ‘Oh, my God, there you are on TV.’ ‘’

When he is not appearing as an extra on a television show or in a movie, Jack Feltes is looking after his bees. He has been a beekeeper for 54 years and sells honey at craft and vendor shows throughout the area.

St. Charles Mayor Lora Vitek had the opportunity to meet both stars of the movie. She is honored that Fincher chose to film the movie in the city.

“It certainly will put Hotel Baker on a new level,” she said. “But I do know, based on the first cut, I believe that our Municipal Building is in it, obviously a lot of Main Street is, the Arcada Theatre is and so is Riverside Pizza. There are a lot of businesses that have been touched by the movie. When that movie is released, it’s a great thing for our city.”