Actor Ethan Hawke filming Netflix movie in Wading River
Filming got underway in Wading River Thursday for the star-studded Netflix drama Leave the World Behind.
Academy Award-nominee Ethan Hawke was on set for the first scene being shot locally, filming repeated takes driving a Jeep down Hulse Landing Road between Sound Avenue and Route 25A. The actor, currently starring in the Marvel television series Moon Knight, could be seen increasing his speed and swerving the car more dramatically as the takes went along.
Filming on the movie, which also stars Oscar winners Julia Roberts and Mahershala Ali, is expected to continue in Wading River and Calverton through 8 p.m. Thursday and again Friday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. They are filming more driving scenes at other locations where the roads will be closed, including Sound Avenue between East Wind Drive and Hulse Landing Road in Wading River; Twomey Avenue between Sound and Youngs avenues in Calverton; and Horton Avenue between Reeves and Sound avenues in Riverhead, according to a contract with the Town of Riverhead. A source familiar with the production plans said Ms. Roberts was not expected on set this week.
The car used in the film being driven off the set. (Credit: Grant Parpan) 
Actor Ethan Hawke, far left, arrives on set. (Credit: Grant Parpan) 
A neighbor watches the filming. (Credit: Grant Parpan) 
Actor Ethan Hawke turns the Jeep around for another take. (Credit: Grant Parpan) 
Actor Ethan Hawke driving during filming. (Credit: Grant Parpan) 
Trailers at the film’s basecamp Thursday morning. (Credit: Grant Parpan)
The crew could be seen setting up early Thursday at camps set up for the cast and crew at both Lewin Farms and Splish Splash, two popular summer locations currently closed for the season.
Leave the World Behind, from acclaimed television writer and director Sam Esmail (“Mr. Robot”), is set in The Hamptons and based on the New York Times Bestseller of the same name by Rumaan Alam. The 2020 novel, which was a finalist for a National Book Award, is a story about two families, strangers to each other, who are forced together on a long weekend gone terribly wrong, according to deadline.com. Actor Kevin Bacon was also recently added to the cast of the film, which does not yet have a release date on Netflix.
Riverhead Town and the North Fork have been home to a growing number of film and television productions in recent years, including a scene from the show Boardwalk Empire that filmed in roughly the same part of town. Netflix has also filmed in Riverhead for the shows Orange is the New Black and Jessica Jones.
