Hollywood multi-hyphenate Sean Anders, best known for creating such screwball fare as “Hot Tub Time Machine,” “Sex Drive” and “Dumb and Dumber To,” took quite a departure with his 2018 dramedy “Instant Family” by telling the story of a married couple who on a whim decide to become foster parents. Anders based the heartwarming tale, which he wrote, directed and produced, on his own experiences fostering and adopting three children with his wife, Beth, in 2012.
The film (streaming now on both Hulu and Amazon Prime) stars Mark Wahlberg and Rose Byrne as successful house-flippers Pete and Ellie Wagner who open up their home to three siblings, teenaged Lizzy (Isabela Merced) and her younger brother and sister, Juan (Gustavo Escobar), and Lita (Julianna Gamiz).
A feel-good story through and through, the movie left me in heaps of happy tears by the time the credits rolled. The fact that it is based on a true story only made it all the more poignant. As Anders told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “The experience on this movie — and look, I know everybody says this about every movie — but I’m serious, ask anybody affiliated with this movie . . . It was charmed. The cast was so cool, the crew was so great. The kids who were in the movie were wonderful to work with; they had great parents. I think everybody knew that the movie had a little bit of a higher purpose involved with it. So I think it really made the whole cast and crew kinda pull together in a way that is unusual.”
While filming took place in the Atlanta, Georgia area, Anders chose to set “Instant Family” in California, as that is where he adopted his three children and where he is, therefore, most familiar with the laws and protocols that go along with the process. Because he also wanted the film to emanate a sort of Anywhere, U.S.A. feel, he decided to base the story in a spot that doesn’t actually exist – a fictional leafy suburb that he named “Terrance” County after his father.
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Image Credit: Paramount Pictures -
Image Credit: Trulia At the center of the film is the charming Craftsman bungalow where Pete and Ellie bring their new children home and start to forge a family. Though it does have a very California feel thanks to its Arts & Crafts styling, it can be found just outside of Atlanta at 119 Madison Ave. in Decatur. The property last sold in May 2017, a year before “Instant Family” was lensed, and looked considerably different at the time as the MLS images attest to.
Post-sale, the façade was given an extensive facelift, rendering the place almost unrecognizable. Not only was the front porch’s double-arch framing swapped out with a trellised overhang, but the roof windows were supplanted with decorative woodwork. The red front door was also exchanged for a stained wood version and then framed in. The entire exterior was also given a fresh coat of soft mint green paint to replace the previous baby blue. The updates provide the home with a much more traditional Craftsman aesthetic and definitely add to the overall curb appeal.
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Image Credit: Trulia The four-bedroom, two-bath property is just as idyllic inside. While Craftsmans tend to lend themselves to dark, closed-off interiors, the “Instant Family” house is bright, open and airy throughout its 1,781 square feet.
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Image Credit: Trulia Updated in all the right ways, the 1910 residence also retains countless original details including hardwood flooring, wainscotting, plate rails, built-ins galore and a whopping four fireplaces all with their authentic tiling and mantels.
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Image Credit: Trulia The galley kitchen is narrow but long and features all the expected modern hallmarks like granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, a breakfast nook and a pantry.
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Image Credit: Trulia The 0.2-acre yard is brimming with trees, grassy spaces and a stone patio. Outside you’ll also find that most southern of southern amenities – a screened-in rear sleeping porch.
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Image Credit: Paramount Pictures -
Image Credit: Trulia The home is like a perfect slice of Americana, so it is no surprise that it was pegged by the “Instant Family” production team to portray a residence belonging to two professional rehabbers. Only the exterior of the property appeared onscreen, though.
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Image Credit: Paramount Pictures -
Image Credit: Trulia The warm, inviting interior of the Wagner home was a set created by production designer Clayton Hartley and set decorator Beauchamp Fontaine inside of a soundstage at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta. The family’s open floorplan, with a combined kitchen, living room and dining area, is much different than that of the actual house.
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Image Credit: Paramount Pictures -
Image Credit: Trulia The set did take a few design cues from the Craftsman, though, including light wall coloring, extensive door and window framing, and a wood-manteled fireplace positioned at the center of it all.
Thanks to the camaraderie that grew between the cast and crew, the set became like an actual home during filming. As Wahlberg told reporters in a sit-down interview mid-shoot, “You always kind of have this kind of weird family feel to a movie set, but not like this, you know? It’s like just sitting here in this set, I don’t feel like I’m sitting on a set right now, you know? I feel like what are these strangers doing in my living room, you know? Seriously.” That feeling of warmth and family definitely bleeds through from the screen straight into viewers’ hearts.
Until next time, Happy Stalking! 🙂
Stalk It: The Wagner residence from “Instant Family” is located at 119 Madison Ave. in Decatur, Georgia. Disclaimer: Please remember this is a private home. Do not trespass or bother the residents or the property in any way.