Netflix has bought the rights to a movie set in a century-old southwest Louisiana landmark called the Gothic Hanging Jail , even though it was filmed on the other side of the state.
Charlie Shotwell plays the title role in "Eli," about a boy being treated for a rare disease at a clinic in a haunted prison. It will be on the streaming service sometime this year, but no date has yet been set, Netflix spokeswoman Sabryna Phillips said in an email Monday to The Associated Press.
Beauregard Parish Tourism Director Lori Darbonne told the American Press that having the movie streamed should boost local tourism in a big way. "After seeing the great success of other movies released by Netflix, I believe this will be a huge deal for the jail and I am excited to see what that level of publicity may do for the facility," she said.
About 40 to 160 people tour the jail during any given month, she said. The film was shot in New Orleans by Paramount Pictures' Paramount Players division, which was working with MTV and had planned an early January release.
The film crew made a 3-D digital scan of the jail and grounds in DeRidder, about 200 miles (325 kilometers) from New Orleans, to be added during editing, Darbonne said.
DeRidder's jail, built in 1914 in what's called the Collegiate Gothic style, became known as the "Hanging Jail" in the 1950s after a song was written about the execution of two convicted murderers in 1928. The jail opened for tours in November 2016, after a six-year renovation.