By Emily Schopfer
MIDDLETOWN – Netflix film crews rolled into Middletown earlier this year to film two Netflix-produced thrillers, the movie “An Innocent Girl,” which recently wrapped, and the series “Rabbit, Rabbit,” now expected to wrap sometime in early July.
“Rabbit, Rabbit,” the crime thriller series starring Adam Driver, transformed the former Circus Liquors on Route 35 North, home of the infamous Calico – the so-called “Evil Clown of Middletown” – into a movie gas station named Jep’s Xpress. Driver the series’ star, is a two-time Academy Award nominee best known for his roles in the 2015 film “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and 2021’s “House of Gucci.”
While Middletown officials said Feb. 3 that “intermittent closures of Route 35 are expected,” as of May 26, the main north-south artery through Monmouth County has yet to be closed because of the production. The filming had been expected to run only until June. But Raven Rentas, Middletown deputy communications director, said the timetable has been pushed until early July. The highly visible set along the north side of Route 35 “will be demolished once filming is complete,” according to the township. The town is not privy to future plans for the site beyond the demolition because the property is privately owned, according to a May 7 township statement.
The over 50-acre property has been owned by the Scaduto and Azzolina families for generations. The site’s use has long been disputed between the township and developers and has been at a legal standstill as a result of a builder’s remedy lawsuit filed by potential developer AAMHMT Property LLC against Middletown Township, blocking the town from condemning the site for commercial development. The lawsuit was filed in 2023 and was upheld by New Jersey appeals court in June 2025. The potential housing redevelopment would consist of 937-units, with a percentage designated as affordable housing.
The Circus Liquor’s property is part of a larger Circus Liquors Redevelopment Plan. The plan includes 135 acres owned by Mountain Hill LLC (development company of the Scaduto and Azzolina families.) Roughly 80 acres sitting behind Circus Liquor has already been developed, and is currently the income-restricted apartment complex, The Place at Middletown Walk.
Filmed elsewhere in the township, “An Innocent Girl” is a psychological thriller starring Kerry Washington, an Emmy-winning actor, producer and director known for her roles in the 2024 film “The Six Triple Eight” and the 2012- 2018 series “Scandal.” The film started production in March along private property on Navesink River Road, and is now wrapped up, Raven Rentas, deputy communications director, said.
As for future movie projects, the township said “as of now, we don’t have anything scheduled, but we anticipate many more filming projects with Netflix’s arrival.”
The development of Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth is currently underway in Oceanport and Eatontown.
The article originally appeared in the June 11 – 17, 2026 print edition of The Two River Times.
