Andy Richter Reveals Most of Elf Was Filmed in a Working Mental Hospital

Andy Richter just shared a piece of Elf trivia that changes how you watch the movie. He told Us Weekly that almost all the interiors, including the Hobbs’home, the offices and the mailroom, were filmed in empty wings of an old mental hospital that was still partly functioning. The site was Riverview Hospital in Coquitlam, British Columbia, near Vancouver, and production landed there because studio space was scarce, partly due to a“big vampire movie”filming in the area.

The image Richter painted is unforgettable: Will Ferrell in full Buddy the Elf costume wandering the hospital grounds for a month or two while patients looked out the windows at him. In February. Richter, who played Morris, says he mostly kept to himself between scenes, but he clearly remembers the spectacle outside.

He also passed along a casting what-if, saying Zooey Deschanel told him Selma Blair was discussed for Jovie before Deschanel landed the role. Elf has been a holiday staple for more than two decades, and this behind-the-scenes detail gives fans a whole new reason to revisit it. Which Elf scene are you rewatching first now that you know this?