HOLLYWOOD SOUTH
ZOMBIES, SUPERHEROES AND HOUSEWIVES MAKE A NEW HOME IN GEORGIA
WHEN THE WALKING DEAD STARTED FILMING in Senoia, Ga., in 2011, six stores were open in the 4,000-person town. “It was dying,” says Lee Thomas, deputy commissioner of the Georgia film office. That’s exactly what AMC wanted. In fact, the creators of the hit zombie show wanted Senoia to look completely dead—no cars on the streets, lights turned off, lawns left unmowed. But by killing the town, The Walking Dead brought it back to life.
Georgia has profited from the recent TV boom: several series and movies film at Tyler Perry Studios, parts of which are still under construction and Pinewood Atlanta Studios, shows like
