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'No one knows that': Will Ferrell reveals eerie Metro Vancouver filming spot for 'Elf'

Amir Ali
Amir Ali
|
Jul 28 2026, 5:19 pm
'No one knows that': Will Ferrell reveals eerie Metro Vancouver filming spot for 'Elf'
Vanity Fair/YouTube

It’s way too soon to be talking about Christmas, but it’s hard to ignore after a recent Will Ferrell Vanity Fair interview in which he discussed his fan-favourite holiday flick, Elf, where he revealed a Metro Vancouver connection that he claimed no one knows.

While it isn’t NEW news that Elf was filmed, at least partially, in Metro Vancouver, Ferrell, who plays the titular Elf, revealed a little more detail about exactly where it was shot, particularly one specific scene.

Ferrell was doing a scene-by-scene breakdown with Vanity Fair, in which he rewatched Anchorman, Elf, Step Brothers, and more.

The iconic actor, known for his ridiculous characters on SNL and classic comedy films, told Vanity Fair that the department store, including the toy store, was shot “in an old mental hospital in Vancouver, Canada.”

He’s, of course, talking about Riverview, where many TV shows and films have been shot.

“We used that as the interior of the department store,” Ferrell said.

“So… no one knows that, till now,” he told Vanity Fair.

You can watch Ferrell discuss the scene in the link below, which should be timestamped during the Elf conversation.

Tons of popular Hollywood movies and TV shows have been filmed at Riverview Hospital, including Deadpool 2, Final Destination, and The Butterfly Effect.

Riverdale got a ton of attention for the Riverview production. The X-Files also spent a bunch of time filming at Riverview.

If you want to see the interiors of Riverview on film, the 2011 found-footage horror flick Grave Encounters shows off a ton of the hospital, but beware, it’s a very creepy film.

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