Where Is Sweet Magnolias Filmed? All About the Real Town of Serenity — and Its Place in TV History (Exclusive)
The Georgia town that stands in for the show's fictional South Carolina one has been seen on screen many times before
Richard Ducree/Netflix
Grab your margarita and get ready to pour one out, because the Sweet Magnolias are back for season 3 — and it's time to take a closer look at where the Netflix show is filmed.
The newest season, now streaming, takes viewers back to the fictional town of Serenity, South Carolina, for yet another season of heart-warming friendship and a little bit of heartache with Maddie (JoAnna Garcia Swisher), Dana Sue (Brooke Elliott) and Helen (Heather Headley). It'll also have viewers wishing they could pack their bags for the quiet Southern town so they could grab their own table at Sullivan's before booking a yoga class at The Corner Spa.
PEOPLE spoke with Brad Smith, the location manager for the show, to find out everything there is to know about the show's filming spots — which aren't in South Carolina at all!
Covington Town Square
Shutterstock
The picture-perfect small town where much of Sweet Magnolias is set is Covington, Georgia, a 40-minute drive from Atlanta. This backdrop sets the scene for exterior shots throughout all three seasons of the Netflix show, whether it's Maddie strolling down the street or Helen waiting outside Sullivan's for her lunch to be ready for pickup.
In the town square, you'll find the Newton County Courthouse. The building, complete with its iconic clock tower, can be spotted in the background of several scenes throughout the show. It also has a place of prominence in the show's opening credits.
Eliza Morse/Netflix
Smith tells PEOPLE that Covington and all its Southern charm were the perfect setting for the show because it's such an idyllic hamlet. He says the architecture in the "picturesque" town is "pretty much the same" as what you'd find in South Carolina and adds that for the most part, the Netflix team isn't making many changes to the landscape while filming, unless the storyline calls for it. That means if you show up in downtown Covington right now, it'll look pretty much exactly live Serenity.
Fans who want to see more of the "real" Serenity can take a tour of the filming locations with local travel company Hollywood of the South Tours, which creates custom itineraries featuring all the filming locations for various movies and shows that have filmed in town — including Sweet Magnolias.
Mystic Grill
Netflix
Dana Sue's home away from home in Serenity is her restaurant, Sullivan's. The eatery is a favorite among the locals, and it's a place for people to come and gather for girls' night, family night or date night. It's also where Erik (Dion Johnstone), Isaac (Chris Medlin) and many more hang up their chefs' hats.
Sullivan's may not exist in real life, but Mystic Grill does — and it's a real functioning restaurant in downtown Covington. Sweet Magnolias only uses the exterior of Mystic Grill to film (and films interior shots on a sound stage), but fans can dine at the restaurant, even while filming is happening!
Smith tells PEOPLE that production is very careful to not interrupt business. "We would start our filming very early in the mornings before they opened," he says. "And then if [filming] spilled into part of their lunch, they had another door that we could get people in and out of without interfering with the filming."
Eliza Morse/Netflix
If Mystic Grill looks familiar, that's because this isn't the first time it's been used on screen. The restaurant was featured in The Vampire Diaries and actually got its name from the show. After being used prominently as a filming location, the spot was opened as a fully functioning restaurant in 2014 and named after the town in the show, Mystic Falls.
Law Offices of Wm. Thomas Craig
Maddie may have a bit of a rough start in Sweet Magnolias, but her turnaround starts when she, along with Dana Sue and Helen, open The Corner Spa in the former home of Miss France's (Cindy Karr). The spa becomes a place for the women of Serenity to come together to not just get pampered but be appreciated and support one another. Though all three women take ownership of the place, the spa gives Maddie a new lease on life.
The Corner Spa itself is a place of fiction, but the building does exist in Covington. Production filmed exterior shots at the Law Offices of Wm. Thomas Craig, right off the town square. Much like Mystic Grill, Smith says the Netflix team made every effort to not interrupt Craig's everyday business, cramming all of filming into a short period of time.
Courtesy Of Netflix
Making a visit to check out the law office while you're visiting Covington is a quick walk from the town square, and fans are invited to take photos out front — as long as they're respectful!
Just keep in mind that it won't look exactly like the spa when you stop by.
"The art department brings in the sign and the bench and everything like that," Smith says of all the bells and whistles that turn the building into what you see on your TV. "That way it doesn't interfere with Mr. Craig's business."
Oakhurst Presbyterian Church
David Diener / Atlanta Artistic Weddings
Though a lot of the filming takes place in Covington, production did leave town for some locations, including Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. The show, which brings religion into the story fairly often, has several scenes set in and around the church, including a stint at Bible School and scenes where family and friends attend services.
The real church that Sweet Magnolias used is Oakhurst Presbyterian Church in Decatur, Georgia. The show was filmed both inside and outside the church, so viewers get to see the buildings beautiful stained glass windows and classic architecture.
Netflix
Smith says the church had already been selected when he came onto Sweet Magnolias but he was told that showrunner Sheryl J. Anderson saw the church during scouting and simply loved how it looked. "It looked right for the town," he adds.
What Else Has Been Filmed in Covington?
Covington — often called the Hollywood of the South — is a very popular filming location and has been used for a number of projects over the years. Aside from Sweet Magnolias and The Vampire Diaries, it has been seen in recent years in movies and TV shows like Dumplin', Remember the Titans, Sweet Home Alabama, Legacies and Selma.
Sweet Magnolias wasn't even the first time Smith worked on a project in Covington — which he says he loves because it's close to home for him! He also worked on the TV show version of In the Heat of the Night, which filmed in town in the late '80s and early '90s. "It's gone from a sleepy little town to a very vibrant community now," Smith says.
See more of the real places your favorite shows are filmed, like Ted Lasso, Emily in Paris and The Summer I Turned Pretty, in PEOPLE's On Location Vacation series.
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