New Kensington, Arnold go on camera for filming of streaming series 'Sprung'

Keith Spruill enjoyed getting a look behind the scenes of the production of a television series Monday as filming for Amazon Studios’ “Sprung” was underway in New Kensington.

“This could be the new Hollywood,” he said. “That’s what I’m hoping for, at least.”

Spruill is the maintenance supervisor at Valley Royal Court, where filming took place in the morning. Crews were expected later in the day to be filming outside Roy A. Hunt Elementary School and Della’s Frozen Custard, both in Arnold.

A sign for “Dickleberry Elementary” was placed in front of Hunt, while Della’s was redone as Wanda’s Dogs, a hot dog stand.

Set during the covid pandemic, “Sprung” follows Jack (Garret Dillahunt), who spent more than 20 years in prison, as he moves in with former cellmate Rooster (Phillip Garcia), Rooster’s mom Barb (Martha Plimpton, replacing Illeana Douglas) and Jack’s former prison girlfriend Gloria (Shakira Barrera). The group decides to start righting some of society’s wrongs, targeting the selfish who take advantage of the pandemic for their own gain.

New Kensington and Arnold are not expected to portray themselves in “Sprung.” A member of the production said they’ll be turning 10 towns into one for the show.

Costumes for police bore the name Kimberton, a fictitious town in Maryland. Kimberton also was seen on fliers outside Della’s, as was “Boonton County.” Police cars parked outside Hunt Elementary were marked with “Camden County.”

At Valley Royal Court, Spruill said the production took an empty one-bedroom apartment and turned it into two apartments for use in the show. At one point in the morning, Garcia was seen filming a scene where he got out of an AMC Pacer and walked across the lawn toward one of the apartment buildings.

Spruill said he was told a character in the show was selling hot dogs out the window of her apartment.

“It’s pretty neat,” Spruill said. “A definite change of pace from what I would normally see at work. It’s interesting to see what goes into making a movie.”

Both cities and the New Kensington-Arnold School District were involved, New Kensington Mayor Tom Guzzo said.

“I think it’s kind of fun and interesting that they’re using several locations in New Kensington and Arnold for the series,” he said. “The location people have been great to work with. It has created a lot of excitement and buzz around both towns.”

Arnold last saw cameras in 2018 for filming of the streaming series “One Dollar.”

“We are ecstatic that our small town has been selected to play a starring role in what should be a fantastic comedy,” Arnold Mayor Joe Bia said of “Sprung.”

“We welcome the cast and crew back any time,” Bia said.

Residents of Central Tower watched the filming at Valley Royal Court from their building across Fourth Avenue. New Kensington police closed Fourth and Fifth avenues in the area while film crews were working.

While some area residents were perturbed at the production disrupting their normal daily routines, others found it interesting.

“It’s nice to have something positive happen in the community,” Central Tower resident Melanie Schuler said.

Paul Oliver found the number of people and the amount of equipment remarkable. He was amazed they chose to film here.

“It’s nice to see it,” he said. “I’ve never seen a movie being made, ever.”

Athena Syput of Arnold has two daughters, Addisyn, 11, and Kinleigh, 8, who go to school at Hunt. She didn’t know the school was going to be in the show, but she knew about Della’s because her family lives nearby on Kimball Avenue.

“I think it’s awesome,” Syput said. “I can’t wait to see (the series).”