Ocean City To Serve As Backdrop For Future 'Servant' Episode

OCEAN CITY, NJ — Ocean City has long been the backdrop for summer family fun along the Jersey Shore, but its ocean vistas and cool summer breezes are also attractive to others who don’t seek out the location for rest and relaxation.

The Apple TV+ psychological horror series “Servant” filmed an episode in Ocean City recently, according to the New Jersey Motion Picture & Television Commission. The episode, the commission said, required beach scenes and New Jersey “provided the perfect setting.”

The show’s producers worked with city officials to set up the filming, the commission said. Chris Gormley, who works as the assistant location manager for “Servant”, said that local officials were accommodating with the production efforts in order to provide the perfect backdrop for the series.

“The experience was fantastic,” Gormley said according to a story published on commission’s website. “City officials made it very easy. They streamlined the process, and we were given one central point of contact. All our needs were included in the permit (beach and boardwalk filming). This gave our crew great peace of mind when filming.”

Ocean City spokesman Doug Bergen told Patch in email Friday that Apple TV crews filmed scenes for a Season 3 episode in March. Crews filmed on the beach and boardwalk near 14th Street and that a cast and crew of about 65 people set up at the Flanders Hotel for the shoot.

“Servant” debuted in 2019 and chronicles a Philadelphia family who hires a nanny to care for their son. As soon as the nanny arrives, strange and frightening occurrences begin to take place. The series is produced by creator Tony Basgallop and M. Night Shyamalan.

Gormley said that Ocean City businesses were also welcoming and saw the filming in Ocean City as a sign that good fortunes would follow for the summer, he said, according to the commission website. The merchants’ willingness to provide color added depth to the production value of the filming process, Gormley said.

“New Jersey is a very welcoming place, and the Jersey Shore has some of the best locations and offers the best production value on the East Coast,” Gormley said.