Hamm about town Winnipeg works at being a welcoming but low-key location for actors shooting projects in the city Behind the Scenes
By: Eva Wasney Posted: 5:10 PM CST Friday, Nov. 28, 2025

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This article was published 28/11/2025 (254 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Jon Hamm has spent the last month acting like a real Winnipegger.

While the Mad Men star hasn’t missed a Winnipeg Transit bus (as far as we know) or experienced a bone-chilling winter day (yet), he has become something of a regular at local restaurants and sporting events this fall.

Hamm, 54, is in town filming American Hostage, an eight-part series based on a true crime podcast of the same name. In both, the Golden Globe-winning actor plays Fred Heckman, a real-life Indianapolis radio reporter who in 1977 helped defuse an active hostage situation after interviewing kidnapper Tony Kiritsis on air.

The crime drama also stars Giovanni Ribisi (Sneaky Pete), Mireille Enos (The Killing) and William Jackson Harper (The Good Place) — all of whom have been spotted doing their own civic exploring.

Which raises the question: how do celebrities find out where to go and what to do in Winnipeg?

The process, it turns out, is a mix of targeted recommendations and word of mouth that highlights the symbiotic relationship between the local movie industry and other cultural sectors.

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While generous tax credits make Manitoba an attractive filming locale, its dining and entertainment options also play a major role in helping woo productions, says Lynne Skromeda, the province’s film commissioner and the CEO of Manitoba Film and Music.

“First and foremost, we’re showing off what they might need for their work — locations, facilities and meeting crew members — but then we’ll always go out with them for a meal and they ask, ‘What’s it like to live here? What are the neighbourhoods like? What can you do at night?’ If you’re going to be here for a while, you want to know that you have things to do,” she says.

When a prospective producer comes to town, Skromeda will plan an itinerary based on the needs and interests of their cast and crew. Extracurricular highlights can include private tours of art galleries, museums and concert venues, or a list of popular spas and specialty grocery stores.

If a project does land in Winnipeg, those curated recommendations may trickle down to the talent, while other suggestions might arise from local crew members.

American Hostage began shooting in early November and is set to wrap in February. Hamm, a sports lover, has already attended a Winnipeg Jets game and the 2025 Grey Cup, where he met Prime Minister Mark Carney and reportedly had high praise for the outing.

“If Jon Hamm said he had a good day, I know that we did our job,” says Kenny Boyce, the City of Winnipeg’s manager of film and special events, who works closely with Skromeda to entertain visiting producers and actors.

Part of the job is partnering with “film-friendly” amenities that can handle big-name guests, whether that be hotels with separate entrances or restaurants with private rooms, Boyce says.

One such restaurant is 529 Wellington. The high-end steakhouse has a separate staircase and upstairs dining room, where Brad Pitt, Jennifer Lopez, Richard Gere and John Travolta have eaten.

“We try to make it as low-key as possible. We want them to experience true hospitality without having everybody stumble all over them,” says Doug Stephen, founder of WOW! Hospitality Concepts, which operates the steakhouse (and several other restaurants) and has a formal partnership with Manitoba Film and Music to sponsor client meals during scouting visits.

Hamm has dined at 529 several times and recently stopped by WOW!’s Prairie’s Edge alone and unannounced, where he ordered a classic breakfast and a Caesar to drink. Later, the American actor was seen walking down Sherbrook Street with a coffee in hand.

“It appears that he’s really embraced life in Winnipeg,” Stephen says, adding the Landman and Fargo star was very friendly during encounters with staff.

While many celebrities stay at fancy hotels such as the Fort Garry and Fairmont, others choose to bask in the relative anonymity available in Winnipeg — another of the city’s selling points.

“A lot of people end up getting a place to live and can just be a normal person for a while,” Skromeda says.

There are no paparazzi here and playing it cool is an unwritten rule among business owners and the general public.

Boyce has hosted many famous people during his nearly 30-year career and, more often than not Winnipeggers will leave them alone, he says.

“(They’ll) save their moment to say hi or take a picture until the end of the meal, which is wonderful. It’s just a Prairie thing, I think.”

Vera Pizza owner Terik Cabildo has almost gotten used to seeing celebrities in his restaurant on a regular basis. Almost.

“When they walk in, it’s a bit surreal,” Cabildo says, adding he’s not sure how his casual South Osborne pizzeria has landed on the radar of stars filming in town.

“Winnipeg’s small and there’s lots of good restaurants and local businesses that all of us enjoy, and I think they must get the same information.”

In September, actors Joe Pantoliano and Jared Harris — in town filming Violent Night 2, alongside stars David Harbour and Kristen Bell — popped in for a slice of pie.

Earlier this month Vera hosted a private dinner for the cast and crew of American Hostage. Cabildo served some of his classic pizzas, along with a burrata cheese appetizer; a snap pea, pancetta and dill salad; grilled zucchini; and vegan coconut-vanilla ice cream. Afterward Hamm and Giovanni Ribisi posed for a photo with staff.

Mireille Enos must have enjoyed the meal because she returned with husband Alan Ruck (Succession) several weeks later.

“It’s fun to see these people in real life, and it’s a cool acknowledgement that they wanted to eat at your place and that someone recommended it,” Cabildo says.

The American Hostage cast aren’t just wining and dining in Winnipeg; they’re also shopping local.

Clothing designer Jill Sawatzky had a surprise encounter with William Jackson Harper during a First Fridays event in November.

She was hosting a pop-up of her Tony Chestnut brand at Public General Store’s Arthur Street studio when in walked an “objectively absolutely gorgeous” man with a nice hat and a dazzling smile.

“He was so hot,” she says with a laugh. “It was like, ‘Oh, of course you’re a celebrity.’”

Harper, who appeared on the most recent season of The Morning Show, had just finished filming for the day and was walking around the Exchange District. He popped into Clothing Bakery, a vintage shop on the building’s main floor, before making his way upstairs where he purchased some candles and incense from Public.

“The thing that was remarkable about it is actually how unremarkable it was; he was really nice and chill and unassuming,” Sawatzky says. “And the fact that he put the energy into checking out this local installation is just so neat.

“Winnipeg is a really cool city with a great art scene and stuff going on, and the more people that catch onto it, the better.”

“Winnipeg is a really cool city with a great art scene and stuff going on, and the more people that catch onto it, the better.”

And celebrities are beginning to catch on. Winnipeg has received some positive public buzz from A-list actors who seem to have genuinely enjoyed their time here. See: Henry Winkler’s glowing review of his meal at Deer + Almond last year, and Bob Odenkirk’s assessment of Winnipeg as “amazing” and “interesting” on Seth Meyers’ podcast earlier this summer.

The things that make this hard-on-itself city a great place to live — its celebrated restaurants, world-class cultural institutions, sports teams and small-town vibe — are the same things that have helped it become a northern Hollywood hub.

“He wouldn’t come back over and over again if there wasn’t a good reason to,” Skromeda says of Odenkirk, who filmed Nobody, Nobody 2 and the upcoming Normal in Winnipeg.

“We have an established industry, we have the facilities and we have benefits, like the culinary scene, that makes it worthwhile.”

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