Lockport takes pride in serving as fictional town for HBO series

Lockport — HBO has announced that it will be launching the third and final season of its show “Somebody Somewhere” with a special Oct. 30 event in Lockport, the city that has served as its backdrop since 2022.

Over the course of three seasons, the Peabody Award-winning series has been shot on location in Lockport, which stands in for the canonical setting of Manhattan, Kansas, including in the home of a local family.

“It’s been nice to get Lockport out there on the map,” Lockport Marketing and Special Events Coordinator Allison Cann said. “We think it’s great HBO wanted to film here, and we love having the representation.”

“There’s always an economic benefit for something like this, and it’s been a lot of fun for the community,” Lockport Mayor Steven Streit said. “The people enjoyed seeing it filming around town and getting to interact with the crew, and they were always very friendly to the residents.”

“You don’t realize how much goes into filming something like this. There were so many people in our house and yard and the church next door had the whole lot filled with trailers.”

—  Laura Rogers, Lockport resident

Locations used in the upcoming season include the corner of Hamilton and 10th streets, Rocco’s Pub, 16716 W. 159th St., and the home of residents Laura and Dave Rogers.

“It was such a cool experience,” Laura Rogers said. “I’m a stay-at-home mom, so I was home one afternoon in January and they just knocked on my door and said they were looking for a house to film in that had a dining room big enough to seat 10 people.

“I’d watched the show because I wanted to see Lockport on TV and I got invested in it, “she added. “So I let them in and I swear a million people came to look at the house before they told me they wanted to use it.”

During the production time, Rogers and her family were provided with hotels rooms for 18 days while HBO completely emptied, decorated, then redecorated and refilled the house, which is used as the home of the character Brad in season three.

“We think it’s great HBO wanted to film here, and we love having the representation.”

—  Allison Cann, marketing and special events coordinator for city of Lockport

Rogers said the situation was a “win-win” because she had been planning on redecorating part of the house before HBO asked to use it for the production.

“I asked if I needed to move anything and they told me we just needed to take what we’d need for and they’d handle moving everything else in and out. The best part was when they repainted, I gave them the new colors I’d wanted so I got the whole thing done as part of the show,” she said with a laugh.

During the production, the Rogers family was able to come in and out of the house, meet with the cast, and watch parts of the production.

“You don’t realize how much goes into filming something like this,” she said. “There were so many people in our house and yard and the church next door had the whole lot filled with trailers. I went into the kitchen to get some medication out of the cabinet and realized they’d even emptied the cabinets. It was crazy, but cool.”

Rogers said that the production team and cast were very accommodating and friendly to her and her family, especially considering that she was recovering from an unexpected surgery at the time of filming.

“People said I was crazy for still going through with it after that, but I would do it again in a heartbeat,” Rogers said. “Everyone was so cool and down-to-Earth. They’re good people, and I’m glad I did it.”

Rogers said seeing the first trailer for the show, which included shots inside her house was “surreal” and that she is looking forward to attending the screening and “seeing what happens in my house.”

Exclusive screening

Season three of “Somebody Somewhere” premieres on HBO at 9:30 p.m. Oct. 27. The city of Lockport and HBO are hosting a special advance screening for the series Oct. 30 at the ROXY Theater, 1017 S. State St., where guests will have a chance to meet the creators and stars of the show.

“It’s coming along pretty well,” said Cann, who is coordinating the event for the city. “This is the last season, and we want it to be a big party for the fans and the cast to celebrate the show and Lockport.”

The screening event will give guests the chance to watch the show’s first two episodes of the season and invitation-only. Following the screening guests will also get to enjoy h’ors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, and a special Q&A session with the show’s cast and creators Bridget Everett, Hannah Bos, Paul Thureen and Jeff Hiller,

Residents and fans who want to attend can win tickets through the “Somewhere in Lockport” raffle sponsored by local restaurants Coom’s Corner, Ember’s tap House, Papa Joe’s and Vegan Cafe.

Entries to the raffle can be obtained by scanning the raffle QR code at the participating restaurants through Oct. 15. Winners will be notified by 5 p.m. Oct. 17. More details are available on the City of Lockport website, cityoflockport.net/somewhere.