Why Hollywood Keeps Coming Back to the Gold Coast

When people think of famous filming locations, they usually picture Hollywood, Manhattan, or maybe a sleepy town that suddenly became famous after appearing in a hit TV show.

But Long Island's Gold Coast has been shaping movies, television, and pop culture for more than a century. Sometimes Hollywood films here. Other times, Hollywood simply borrows from here.

From Gatsby to Succession, the mansions, estates, and larger-than-life stories of the North Shore have inspired some of the most iconic settings in entertainment.

The Original Inspiration: The Great Gatsby

No discussion of the Gold Coast and Hollywood is complete without The Great Gatsby.

F. Scott Fitzgerald lived in Great Neck during the 1920s, where he found himself surrounded by lavish parties, waterfront estates, and newly wealthy New Yorkers eager to make their mark. The fictional East Egg and West Egg were inspired by the North Shore communities surrounding him.

In many ways, the Gold Coast became the blueprint for Gatsby's world. While film adaptations have been shot elsewhere, the story itself was born right here.

Citizen Kane's Xanadu

One of cinema's most famous mansions wasn't entirely fictional.

The legendary estate "Xanadu" in Citizen Kane drew inspiration from several grand American estates, including Oheka Castle in Huntington. With its massive scale and European-inspired architecture, Oheka represented exactly the kind of excess filmmakers wanted audiences to associate with unimaginable wealth.

Old Westbury Gardens: Hollywood's Favorite Estate

While Oheka often gets the spotlight, Old Westbury Gardens may actually be one of the most filmed properties on Long Island.

The estate has appeared in productions including:

• The Age of Innocence
• Cruel Intentions
• American Horror Story
• The Gilded Age

Its formal gardens, grand staircases, and timeless architecture make it a favorite whenever filmmakers need a setting that feels elegant, historic, and distinctly East Coast.

Succession and Modern-Day Wealth

More recently, HBO's Succession brought the Gold Coast back into the spotlight.

Oheka Castle served as a lavish European hunting lodge for the Roy family, proving that even in today's world of private jets and billionaires, the grandeur of the Gold Coast still feels unmatched.

The setting fit perfectly with the show's themes of power, wealth, and family dynasty.

Netflix's Sirens at Caumsett

One of the newest productions to showcase the North Shore is Netflix's Sirens.

The series used Caumsett State Historic Park Preserve in Lloyd Harbor as the backdrop for a fictional billionaire's estate. Anyone who has walked the trails, ridden bikes through the preserve, or watched the sunset over Long Island Sound knows exactly why producers were drawn there.

Few places capture the beauty of the North Shore quite like Caumsett.

Even Pop Stars Can't Resist

The Gold Coast isn't just for movies and television.

Taylor Swift filmed her wildly popular "Blank Space" music video at Oheka Castle, introducing one of Huntington's most recognizable landmarks to millions of viewers around the world.

For many people, it was their first glimpse of the Gold Coast's extraordinary architecture.

More Than a Filming Location

What's fascinating about the Gold Coast is that even when Hollywood isn't filming here, it's often borrowing from here.

The mansions, waterfront estates, old-money grandeur, and larger-than-life stories of Long Island's North Shore have influenced everything from Gatsby's fictional world to modern prestige television.

For over 100 years, filmmakers, writers, and producers have looked to the Gold Coast whenever they needed a backdrop for wealth, power, romance, ambition, or intrigue.

The next time you're driving through Lloyd Harbor, Sands Point, Oyster Bay, or Huntington, take a closer look.

You might be passing a filming location.

Or you might be passing the inspiration for one.

Either way, the Gold Coast remains one of Hollywood's best-kept secrets.