Where Is ‘Ozark’ Filmed? You Might Be Surprised

Season 3 of Ozark dives back into the complicated criminal lives of the Byrde family. In the first season, the Byrde’s leave Chicago and move to the Missouri Ozarks to launder money for a dangerous drug cartel. The show is riveting, but its locations and landscapes are just as impressive. Here’s where Ozark is actually filmed.  

The Netflix series is set in Missouri

Ozark is centered around Marty (Jason Bateman) and Wendy (Laura Linney) Byrde, and their relationship with a Mexican drug cartel. In season 1, the Byrde’s strike a deal with the head of the cartel to launder money in exchange for their lives.

Marty’s pitch is that he’ll buy a resort in the rural Missouri Ozarks and launder money through it without anyone catching on. However, Marty and Wendy soon learn that the locals are just as dangerous as the cartel, and they have to adapt to the constantly evolving threats around them. 

The show’s creator, Bill Dubuque, worked at the Alhonna Resort in Missouri in the ‘80s. And it was his fascination with the place that inspired him to work it into the show. 

But ‘Ozark’ is not filmed in the Ozarks

Throughout the three seasons of Ozark, viewers can see aerial shots of Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks. But aside from these breathtaking views, most of the show is actually filmed in Georgia. 

Lake Allatoona and Lake Lanier in Georgia serve as the backdrop for most of the Byrde’s waterfront activities. The Blue Cat Lodge shown in the first two seasons is actually a restaurant called J.D.’s on the Lake in Canton, Georgia on the banks of Lake Allatoona.

Marty’s house on the series is actually a property in Flowery Branch, Georgia. It is on the southern edge of Lake Lanier, near Van Pugh North Park. In season 1, Agent Petty (Jason Butler Harner) visits a diner, which is actually an Atlanta restaurant called The Silver Skillet. 

In fact, the home of the Mexican drug cartel head is also a Georgia location. Chateau Elan is a sprawling resort and winery in Braselton, a town about 50 miles north of Atlanta. While many of the outdoor scenes in Ozark are filmed in these beautiful locations throughout Georgia, most of the indoor scenes were shot at Eagle Rock Studios in Atlanta. 

Why is ‘Ozark’ filmed in Georgia?

In an interview shown on Explore Georgia, Ozark actor and director Jason Bateman said that the state was an ideal place to shoot the series because of its waterfront locations and friendly atmosphere. “Our show being one that takes place a lot on a lake, Lanier and Allatoona are fantastic for us,” he explained. “Because one lake is a little bit more residential and the other one has some commercial looks, so we kind of combine the two.”

Laura Linney, who plays Wendy Byrde on Ozark, told the outlet that Georgia’s diverse landscapes add to the show’s aesthetic. “There are these beautiful neighborhoods with these gorgeous homes right next to a city,” Linney said. “Within a few blocks, you have these incredible changes of neighborhood to neighborhood, it’s just an exciting vibrant sort of place to be. There’s a little bit of something for everybody, and that’s unusual.”