Production of “Godmothered” for the Disney+ streaming movie service began in Boston’s North End this week turning parts of the neighborhood into a Christmastime wonderland. Historic North Square saw the largest transformation, with string lights, garland, fake snow and decorated trees.
The film stars Isla Fisher and Jillian Bell with Emmy winner, Jane Curtin, also joining the cast. The studio released the storyline for “Godmothered” as a comedy about Eleanor, a young inexperienced fairy godmother-in-training (Bell) who upon hearing that her profession is facing extinction decides to show the world that people still need fairy godmothers. Finding a mislaid letter from a 12-year old girl in distress, Eleanor tracks her down and discovers that the girl, Mackenzie, is now a 40-year-old single mom (Fisher) working at a news station in Boston. Having lost her husband several years earlier, Mackenzie has all but given up on the idea of “Happily Ever After,” but Eleanor is determined to give Mackenzie a happiness makeover.
Scheduled setup started earlier this week in North Square and continued with winter sets on Salem and Charter Streets on Wednesday. Production is expected to wrap up this week. Massachusetts continues to offer a generous film credit for movie production and there are currently multiple movies being made in Boston. This is the first in North Square, the country’s oldest public square, since it’s complete restoration last year.
[Ed: Previous reports of “Frills” refer to a pre-production code name.]
The festive lighting made the square look beautiful in the dark of winter. Something like this would be a nice addition.
Nice to see that North Square is attracting movie magic.
Movie sounds charming, but still hoping for a real “happily ever after” story to happen in North Square – the re-opening of the historic Seamen’s Bethel-Sacred Heart Italian Church site, closed for over a year. As a neighbor, I know church attracted scores of visitors daily in season, thanks to its location on the Freedom Trail, who were thrilled to see some authentic traces of Italian customs and community. It is prominently displayed in the new sculpture in North Square, and will also be seen in the movie. Used to host Alcoholics Anonymous, school assemblies, and even for a time a playgroup for children. As I understand it, fire safety has to be updated: thankfully, the St. Mark’s Society is financially able to proceed with these repairs. What’s the holdup, Franciscan Friars of Saint Leonard’s (who have not been very forthcoming about the rectory sale)?