August 02, 2024
Provided Image/Warner Bros. Pictures
The new film 'Trap' by M. Night Shyamalan primarily takes place in a fictional Philadelphia venue called Tanaka Arena. Scenes in the arena were actually shot in FirstOntario Centre in Canada.
Filmmaker and Philly-area native M. Night Shyamalan has stuck close to his roots throughout his career, though his new movie "Trap" has other locations dressed up as Philadelphia and its surrounding region.
The film follows a father (Josh Hartnett) taking his young daughter to a concert for fictional pop star sensation Lady Raven (Saleka Shyamalan). The bulk of the movie takes place in Tanaka Arena in Philadelphia — but it's clearly not one of the city's venues.
Tanaka Arena has red and yellow signage similar to the Wells Fargo Center, but the exterior of the fictional stadium is actually the Rogers Centre in Toronto and the inside is FirstOntario Centre in Ontario.
The exterior of the fictional Philly stadium Tanaka Arena is actually the Rogers Centre in Toronto.
Where this arena would be located in Philly is ambiguous. Near the beginning of the film, Hartnett parks near an elevated highway, and as the camera follows them, a sign for the U.S. Route 1 Philadelphia and Trenton exit is visible at the top of the frame.
There are also several shots depicting police vehicles driving through Market Street to the arena, and a police dispatcher at one point in the film mentions 9th and Market streets, where the Fashion District stands. Is Tanaka Arena an alternate, actualized version of the proposed 76ers arena?
The several high-rise buildings surrounding the arena are not recognizable as any in Philly. One shot of police en route to the arena shows a nearby building with the words "CONVENTION CENTER" in generic font, with no resemblance to the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Center City.
Philadelphia Police and SWAT vehicles drive through a fictionalized Market Street in the movie 'Trap.'
It isn't the first time Shyamalan has inserted a fictional building in Philly for one of his movies. In his 2019 film "Glass," the opening of a new fictional skyscraper called the Osaka Tower is a major plot point; the film inserts the tower into the Philly skyline using CGI.
Spoilers for "Trap" follow.
After the Lady Raven concert ends, the action of the film moves to the surrounding suburbs of Philly, where Hartnett's character lives. He states that his address is on Monk Road, which in real life is located in Gladwyne.
Bizarrely, police vehicles labeled "East Dublin Police" are seen in this area. There is an Upper Dublin Township in Montgomery County in real life, but Gladwyne is in the Lower Merion Township.
Adding to the confusion, a news report retelling the events of the movie during the credits mentions the Main Line town of Malvern, which is in East Whiteland Township — this fictional "East Dublin" is apparently an amalgamation of different suburban areas.
While "Trap" may have not been shot on location in Philadelphia like previous Shyamalan films, it is still clearly a Philly-set movie — one character even dresses in excessive Sixers apparel, if that doesn't make it obvious enough.
The film serves as a fun nod to Shyamalan's hometown — even if the confusing geography might flummox Philly folks who care about the details.
