‘Mayans M.C.’ is a blistering motorcycle gang series and the spin-off that the wildly popular ‘Sons of Anarchy’ series deserves. Created by Kurt Sutter and Elgin James, the show takes place two-and-a-half years after the events of the original series and follows a close-knit biker gang known as the Mayans Motorcycle Club based in the fictional border town of “Santo Padre” in California. Since its inception on September 4, 2018, ‘Mayans M.C.’ has spawned a total of three powerful seasons.
Going back and forth across the border as the Mayans M.C. takes care of business and grows its empire, the show gives a raw and violent look into the Latino biker gangs of Southern California and Mexico. To maintain its aesthetic, the show uses multiple locations to build a world that the Mayans Motorcycle Club inhabits. If you’re curious to know where this show is filmed, we’ve got you covered!
Mayans M.C. Filming Locations
‘Mayans M.C.’ is filmed in multiple locations across southern California and northern Mexico. Unlike many other shows that use American border towns to portray Mexico, the filmmakers here actually film a lot of the Mexican and border scenes on location in Mexico and at the border.
In an interview with Variety, actor Edward James Olmos said that filming on location is the most important part of the show and that they want to portray “that life” (the life of border gangs) and bring it to life. The show also uses local film crews while filming in Mexico. Let’s take a closer look at the filming locations of ‘Mayans M.C.’
Los Angeles County, California
Plaza México cultural center in the town of Lynwood in LA County is the setting for the Mexican market square seen regularly on the show. The exact location of Plaza México is 3100 E Imperial Highway, Lynwood, California. Often, scenes that are shot on location in Mexico are followed by shots of Plaza México in California since they both portray the Mexican side of the show.
According to a local radio station, scenes of a shootout and an explosion that features in the third season of ‘Mayans M.C.’ were filmed in the parking structure of Old Town Newhall on 22551, 9th Street, Santa Clarita, California. Additional scenes involving nine motorcycles and approximately ten background extras were also filmed on various streets of the Old Town Newhall neighborhood, including Main Street, 8th Street, Newhall Avenue, Lyons Avenue, Market Avenue, and Railroad Avenue.
The Clubhouse in the show is located in the parking lot of Santa Clarita Studios on 25135 Anza Drive, Santa Clarita. Hustler Casino on 1000 West Redondo Beach Boulevard, Gardena, is located 15 miles from downtown LA and stands in for San Búho Tribal Casino. Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery, where the face-off between 2 rival gangs takes place, is located on 1831 West Washington Boulevard, southwest of Downtown Los Angeles. The high school flashback scenes were shot in San Fernando Senior High School, located in the Pacoima neighborhood of Los Angeles, in the northeastern San Fernando Valley.
Ventura County, California
California-based news outlet The Ventura County Star reported several blocks in downtown Santa Paula being used for filming ‘Mayans M.C.’ The scenes that were filmed here included military and US Border Patrol vehicles as well as 120 cast and crew members. For a small town like Santa Paula, ‘Mayans M.C.’ was a “big production,” said Gregory Barnes, director of the city’s Parks & Recreation Department, which also oversees filming permits.
Due to the pandemic, incentives were given to studios to film locally and avoid flying, making Santa Paula a good option for productions based in Los Angeles. Santa Paula is a city in Ventura County, California, and is only about 60 miles away from Los Angeles.
Imperial County, California
According to Imperial Valley Press, scenes featuring the fictional town of Santo Padre, where the Mayans motorcycle club is based, are filmed in Calexico city in southern Imperial County, Southern California.
The wide-open vistas and desert landscape of the surrounding Yuha desert ( which is a part of the Sonoran Desert) are also featured in multiple scenes in all three seasons of the show.
Tecate, Baja California
A large portion of the scenes based in Mexico and on the US-Mexican Border are filmed in the border town of Tecate in Baja California, in northwestern Mexico. The town is known for being one of the entry points on the US and Mexico border.
While talking to Variety, Clayton Cardenas, who plays Angel Reyes on the show, stated that they want to stay authentic to real Latino culture and don’t want “some whitewashed type of dialect and visuals.” Hence, so much of the shooting is done on location in the specific country that is being portrayed.
Mexico City, Mexico
In the scene where Emily and her mother-in-law go across the border to Mexico, their car stops on a street in the Historic Center of Mexico City. There are also brief scenes shot at various outdoor locations in and around Mexico City, keeping the feel of the show authentic.
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