Discover Casco, Maine: The Real Town Behind “The Monkey” Horror Film
In recent weeks, Stephen King’s short story “The Monkey” has been adapted into the horror-comedy film “The Blackcoat’s Daughter,” directed by Osgood Perkins. Set in the real town of Casco, Maine, the film contrasts with King’s fictional towns like Derry and Castle Rock.
This article delves into what makes Casco unique, its appeal as a horror story backdrop, the filming locations, and Maine’s influence on filmmakers. Whether you’re a King enthusiast or curious about New England’s eerie spots, this overview will deepen your appreciation for Casco.
Real Casco: A Town With True Character
Casco is not only a figment of Stephen King’s imagination. It’s a small town in Cumberland County, Maine, with history and natural beauty. Established in 1841, Casco is located in the center of the Sebago Lake region.
The town of Casco has a population of around 3,600. It provides an authentic small-town atmosphere where the sounds of nature replace the sounds of the city. Loon cries across Pleasant Lake are as frequent as horn honks.
Casco is distinctive because of its water. The town is bordered by eight significant lakes and ponds, including Sebago Lake, Crescent Lake, Panther Pond, and Thompson Lake. This makes for a terrain of rolling hills, verdant forests, and tranquil lakefronts.
The town’s foggy lakeshores and misty mornings are hauntingly beautiful. It is easy to see why this setting would pique Stephen King’s interest as he wrote “The Monkey.” The physical environment map of Casco offers the ideal setting for stories that interleave the everyday with the perilous.
Visitors to Casco can fish, boat, hike, and take in the scenery. The town retains its rural character while offering enough shops and other amenities for locals and visitors. That combination of accessibility and isolation makes it both welcoming and a little foreboding — ideal for a horror story setting.
Why Casco Seems Like A Fake King Location
It’s just that Casco has this sort of quality that seems too good to be true. That’s likely why many moviegoers think it’s just another fictional Maine town from King’s imagination. Stephen King has invented a whole world of fictional Maine places. But you still have ”Tombstone.”
And you’ve got plenty of towns, fictional but real to fans, like Derry (from “IT”) and Castle Rock (from many King stories) that have become famed even though they don’t exist on real maps. These imagined locales are so fleshed out that they feel genuine; not all fans can distinguish between what is real and what is not in King’s Maine.
Casco’s relative obscurity has not helped with the confusion. Casco isn’t a famous Maine destination like Portland or Bar Harbor. Its small population and remote spot keep it off most tourists’ radars. Because this is such a quiet, out-of-the-way existence, it’s easier to believe that Casco might be the work of another King.
The old-world stillness of the town offers a perfect backdrop for eerie tales. Hal and Bill Shelburn’s palpable grief after their mother’s death is more vivid in a documentary setting of a quiet town in which everyone knew everyone else.
Adding to the confusion, Casco shares its name with Casco Bay, the more recognizable area near Portland. For those not versed in Maine’s geography, the name overlap can further confuse the borders between reality and fiction.
The authentic small-town feel of Casco is perfect for horror stories. The community connections, the old buildings, and the natural isolation all provide tension between safety and danger — a core ingredient in successful horror.
Filming Locations: British Columbia Doubles For Maine
Although “The Monkey” takes place in Casco, Maine, it wasn’t filmed in the town. The production team traveled to British Columbia, Canada, primarily filming in Maple Ridge and Vancouver.
The location switch is a common practice in filmmaking. Production companies frequently select locations based on tax breaks, available facilities, and weather conditions. British Columbia has very generous film incentives that attract Hollywood productions.
What adds to the effectiveness of this work is the visual resemblance between British Columbia and Maine. Both areas are full of dense woods, small lakeside villages, and a bit of rustic charm. Architecture and natural settings make some Canadian towns stand-ins for New England.
The filmmakers probably relied on set dressing and shrewd camera angles to make British Columbia appear like Maine. Details such as license plates, store signs, and regional products make a Canadian location pass as a New England town.
For viewers with knowledge of either location, there may be telltale indicators that signal the substitution. But for most viewers, the illusion holds – they read the credits “Casco, Maine” on screen, not a Canadian fill-in.
It’s normal in the business to shoot a location with a story that takes place somewhere else. Yet a more critical consideration is building a believable world in service to the story, and The Monkey achieves that goal even without shooting in the actual town.
Maine’s Persistent Allure In Film, Fiction
Maine occupies a unique place in the American imagination, particularly when it comes to horror and drama. The state’s natural beauty and isolation make it ripe for stories of wonder and terror.
No author is more synonymous with the state than Stephen King, whose mix of horror and heart put his state on the literary map. His stories often employ the distinctive character of Maine — the long winters, small towns, and deep woods — to build settings where odd things feel possible. He said Maine’s landscape speaks to Kind, ever inspiring his work.
Though Casco in particular hasn’t been a heavy-hitting destination for filmmakers, the broader Sebago Lake area has drawn moviemakers in search of authentic New England scenery. Towns nearby, including Naples and Raymond, as well as the Portland area, have represented a variety of small towns for film and TV productions.
What makes Maine so captivating to storytellers is its timeless nature. Many Maine towns appear as they have for decades, with historic buildings, general stores, and town squares that seem like something from an earlier America. This quality makes Maine stories feel both of the moment and a slightly different era.
The state’s seasonal extremes offer natural drama, too. Cold winters, foggy coastal mornings, and stunning autumn foliage provide ready-made atmospheres for various sorts of tales. A Maine setting tells an audience certain things right away—about resilience, isolation, and a connection to nature.
As “The Monkey” shows, Maine’s real-life towns can be every bit as riveting as the fictional ones. Having Casco in the film lends authenticity and grounds the supernatural elements in a real place that viewers can find on a map.
B-Roll: The Scorpion Scene That Never Was
Even the good ones have scenes that end up on the cutting-room floor. The Monkey had an intense moment with a real scorpion that didn’t make the final cut.
Director Osgood Perkins revealed this deleted scene in a press interview. The clip featured a scorpion crawling into a mug of hot chocolate. Interestingly, they used a real scorpion, not a computer-generated one, for the filming.
The scorpion, Perkins said, “was paid very, very well” and “had an entourage.” Although he joked that they had been “cruel scorpions,” the crew cheered the arthropod once its scene was complete.
Tsuchida noted that the scorpion moment they cut would have taken place in the film’s first act. It was supposed to show a young Hal making hot chocolate for his brother Bill and then witnessing the scorpion before spilling the drink. This would have tied to Hal’s obsessions with killing his twin brother, as you just know the scene where Hal drops a bowling ball somewhere around Bill’s sleeping face.
Perkins answered its omission, saying, ”It wasn’t great” (though actor Theo James joked otherwise). Such editing decisions are a dime a dozen in the world of filmmaking, where directors have to decide what best fits the larger story.
The scorpion scene appears only briefly in the movie’s trailer, which is how fans learned of its existence. It’s common enough practice in film to add deleted scenes to trailers, leaving viewers to wonder where some moments went.
FAQ
Stephen King wrote about Casco, Maine but is it a real place?
Casco is the name of an actual town in Cumberland County, Maine. Unlike King’s fictional towns like Derry and Castle Rock, there’s a real-life Casco you can go to. It was incorporated in 1841 and has roughly 3,600 residents.
Where was “The Monkey” shot?
Although set in Maine, It Was filmed in British Columbia, Canada. Maple Ridge and Vancouver were the principal filming locations, doubling for Casco.
What makes Casco a good setting for a horror story?
The mix of natural beauty and isolation and the small-town vibe make Casco a perfect environment for horror. Its lakes are surrounded by mist, its forests are thick and twisted, and hushed streets offer stunning landscapes and unsettling remoteness.
Are there other Stephen King tales situated in real Maine towns?
Yes! King is known for creating fictional places in Maine but uses real settings. He writes of Portland, Bangor (often thinly disguised, in his work, as “Derry”), and other real Maine towns.
Is it possible to visit sites from “The Monkey” in Casco?
The film was not shot in Casco, so there are no specific filming locations to visit. However, visitors can get a taste of the lakes, forests, and small-town flavor that inspired the setting.
What was the deleted scorpion scene in “The Monkey”?
The Film’s very start included a moment where a scorpion walks into a mug of hot chocolate. Director Osgood Perkins said this scene, in which young Hal tries to harm his brother Bill, was intended for but removed from the final film.
Final Words
Casco, Maine, often overshadowed by its fictional ties to Stephen King and Osgood Perkins’s film The Monkey, offers a genuine New England charm that transcends horror. This small lakeshore town embodies natural beauty and community spirit, making it a rare gem in today’s world.
While “The Monkey” touches on the supernatural, the real Casco invites fans to explore a place that inspired the story. Although British Columbia served as the filming location, Casco’s lakes, forests, and quaint streets contribute to a mood that enhances the narrative. Recognizing Casco bridges fiction and reality satisfyingly, whether visiting or reading the story.
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