You may have seen a crew of trailers and people onsite at the former Prison for Women recently. But they don’t belong to a construction crew – they’re a TV crew!
Mayor of Kingstown, starring Jeremy Renner, is about the fictional McLusky family, a powerful family of prison operators in Kingstown, Michigan.
Naturally, a show about prisons requires some prison properties for filming. And show producer Hugh Dillon knew exactly where to turn.
If the name Hugh Dillon sounds familiar, it should. Dillon is the lead singer from rock band The Headstones and grew up here in Kingston. In addition to his musical career, Dillon has appeared on the small screen in a few different shows, most recently including the series Yellowstone where he worked alongside his co-executive producer on Mayor of Kingstown, Taylor Sheridan.
Naturally, once Paramount greenlit Mayor of Kingstown and filming needed to take place, some of the first calls by Dillon and his team were to the Kingston Film Office and to us as the owners of the former Prison for Women.
The film crew will be on site until Sept. 23. This is actually their third rental, as they have previously used the former prison property for the series trailer shoot and as space for the crew and extras. Most of the actual filming is taking place at the Kingston Penitentiary property, but you can catch a glimpse of the former Prison for Women property during the show’s trailer.
Mayor of Kingstown comes to Paramount+ this fall. Check out the trailer, or head over to The Kingston Herald for more information on the series itself.
And remember: if you see Hugh Dillon while he’s in town filming, be sure to smile and wave!