The “Why Him?” Gate House

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Location managers can be such tricksters!  And there’s pretty much nothing I love more than uncovering the various fabrications that go into a particular locale.  Such was the case with the gate house supposedly situated at the entrance to the massive manse belonging to millionaire video game creator Laird Mayhew (James Franco) in Why Him?  The Grim Cheaper and I recently watched – and thoroughly enjoyed – the 2016 comedy and I went on an immediate quest to track down some of its filming sites.  Thanks to the Global Film Locations website, I quickly homed in on Laird’s sprawling estate, which is known as the Summit House in real life.  One look at the place on Google Street View, though, told me that Laird’s quaint ranch-style gate house could not be found anywhere on the premises.  Ah, the magic of Hollywood!  So I set out to find it.  And find it, I did.

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Thankfully, an address number of 2253 was visible outside of the gate house on the mailbox containing Laird’s facial recognition security device.  I figured that the mailbox and address number were real and began searching for homes with 2253 addresses, first in Beverly Hills near the Summit House and then slowly working my way outward.  I eventually found the right spot about seven miles away at 2253 Linda Flora Drive in Bel Air.

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As I plopped down into Street View, I was shocked to discover that the mailbox that had facilitated my search was not there in real life!  Turns out it was a prop that had been inexplicably fashioned with the home’s real life address for the shoot!

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I was further surprised to see that the driveway where the mailbox was placed as well as the gate situated beyond it belong to the neighboring property located at 2251 Linda Flora Drive.  So two residences were used to represent Laird’s gate house in Why Him?  The trickery was strong with this locale!

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The gate house only pops up briefly in Why Him?, in a beginning scene in which Stephanie Fleming (Zoey Deutch) brings her parents, Ned (Bryan Cranston) and Barb (Megan Mullally), and brother, Scotty (Griffin Gluck), to her boyfriend Laird’s home for the first time.  As they arrive, Barb, mistakenly thinking that the charming dwelling they pull up to is Laird’s residence, says, “Oh, this is cute.”  To which Stephanie explains, “Actually, this is the gate house.”  As you can see, the gate house was changed a bit for the shoot.  A fence was added to the perimeter of the front yard, a window was installed on the side of the pad, and quite a few trees, shrubs and plants, as well as a garden gnome, were brought in.

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Laird Mayhew's Gate from Why Him-7868

Producers also had the gate itself altered for the shoot, completely covering it over with foliage, which nearly obscured it from view.  As Barb says when the gate opens upon the Fleming family’s arrival, “The hedge is moving!”

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In real life, Laird’s gate house is a regular single family home that boasts 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, and 1,560 square feet.

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The driveway and gate next door lead to a newly-built modern residence that boasts 4 bedrooms, 4 baths, 9,300 square feet, a 3.2-acre plot of land, travertine stonework, disappearing glass doors, two separate lawn areas, a detached guest house, a 3-car garage, a reflecting pool surrounded by a pool deck, 14-foot high ceilings, a massive skylight, a chef’s kitchen with Miele and Wolf appliances and electrically-controlled drawers, a library with a glass floor, a wine room, several fireplaces, and a 1,000-foot-long driveway.

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Laird Mayhew's Gate from Why Him-7871

You can see photographs of that property here.

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 For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

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Until next time, Happy Stalking!  Smile

Stalk It: Laird Mayhew’s gate house from Why Him? is located at 2253 Linda Flora Drive in Bel Air.  The actual gate to his home can be found next door at 2251 Linda Flora Drive.  And Laird’s mansion is located at 1159 Summit Drive in Beverly Hills.

The “Why Him?” House

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I don’t like to think of myself as a brat, but I’d be lying if I did not admit to having brat-like tendencies when it comes to choosing what movie to watch with the Grim Cheaper on any given Saturday night.  Typically I veto all of his recommendations straight out of the gate and we wind up watching a flick of my choosing.  That was not the case on a recent evening in, though, when the GC had his heart set on viewing the 2016 James Franco/Bryan Cranston comedy Why Him?  Even though I didn’t have high hopes for the film after watching the trailer, for whatever reason, I acquiesced – and wound up eating crow because not only was the movie great, but it gave me a new obsession, Alaskan King beds.  (If you don’t know what they are, here ya go!  I know, right?  Simply amazing!)  I also became quite obsessed with the flick’s locations, especially the massive modern mansion belonging to Laird Mayhew (Franco).  Thankfully, it was an easy find.  A quick Google search for “Why Him?” and “house” let me to this page on the Global Film Locations website which provided the address – 1159 Summit Drive in Beverly Hills.

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I was only further intrigued when I headed over to check out the property on Google Maps and dropped into Street View.  As the little yellow cartoon man showed me, the pad is completely visible from the road, not hidden behind tall walls and gates like so many other Beverly Hills properties.

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In person, the residence is even more impressive.

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Built in 2011 by Whipple Russell Architects for a sports agent and his family, the sleek contemporary residence replaced a sprawling Mediterranean-style pad that Architectural Digest described as “hodgepodge” in a December 2015 article.  That property is pictured via a 2007 Google Street View image below.  As that home was demolished, its materials were gathered and donated to Habitat for Humanity.  Then Whipple Russell began production on the new manse.

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The completed project, which is known as the “Summit House,” is a work of art.

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Per Zillow and the Architectural Digest article, the 6-bedroom, 11-bath, 10,000-square-foot estate boasts a 2-story entry, glass walls, a formal living room, a library with mahogany paneling, a gym, a master suite with dual closets (yes, please!) and dual baths (again, yes, please!), maid’s quarters, a 5-car garage, a motor court with room for 20 cars (!), several terraces, a rooftop deck, a rec room with a bowling alley and windows looking into the adjacent pool, a media room, a 1.26-acre lot, and a tennis court.

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In Why Him?, college student Stephanie Fleming (Zoey Deutch) brings her parents, Ned (Cranston) and Barb (Megan Mullally), and brother, Scotty (Griffin Gluck), out to Silicon Valley during the holidays to meet her new boyfriend, millionaire video game creator Laird.  During their visit, the Flemings bunk at Laird’s sprawling – and “paperless” – home.

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The movie made extensive use of the Summit House.

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I am fairly certain that the inside of Laird’s mansion was a mix of both the actual residence and studio-built sets.  I believe that the entry;

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rec room;

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and kitchen/dining room shown in the movie were those of the actual Summit House . . .

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. . . while the living room;

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. . . . bathrooms . . .

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. . . and bedrooms were sets.  (There’s that Alaskan King bed I became so enamored with below!)

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You can check out some images of the actual interior of the Summit House here and here.

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Thanks to fellow stalker Gonzague, I learned that the mansion also appeared as the home of  Maximo Reyes (Arturo Castro) in the Season 6 episode of Silicon Valley titled “Blood Money,” though an atrium of sorts was digitally added to the roof of the home for the shoot.

For more stalking fun, follow me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Los Angeles magazine and Discover Los Angeles.

Big THANK YOU to the Global Film Locations website for finding this location!  Smile

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Until next time, Happy Stalking!  Smile

Stalk It: Laird Mayhew’s mansion from Why Him? is located at 1159 Summit Drive in Beverly Hills.