iHostage filming locations: Where was the Netflix true-crime thriller filmed?

The Netflix true-crime thriller iHostage has been filmed in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Helmer of the film, Bobby Boermans, has made some compelling choices regarding the filming locations in order to make the thriller more impactful and significant to the actual event.

The film narrates an incident inside an Apple store in Leidseplein, Amsterdam, when one day, a gunman bursts into the store and risks the lives of the people situated there.

Let us find out more details about the filming locations of iHostage.

iHostage filming locations: Where was the Netflix true-crime thriller filmed?

Primarily, the film has been shot in Amsterdam, Netherlands. And within Amsterdam, it has been shot in Katwijk and Leidseplein.

Leidseplein is the area where the actual incident had taken place in 2022, so the makers must have shot the film in the actual area in order to make it more authentic and realistic. Not just the area, even the actual Apple Store where the incident took place has been a part of its filming too.

The shooting of iHostage commenced last year in 2024, during mid-February, and it concluded by the late March of 2024. The locations have been supervised by Benjamin Hendriks.

1) Apple Store, at Leidseplein, Amsterdam

The outside of the Apple Store at Leidseplein, Amsterdam, has been filmed. The store is located in Hirsch & Cie, Leidseplein 25, 1017 PS Amsterdam, Netherlands.

The fact that the makers have used the actual location where the incident had happened adds more layers of murkiness to this thriller. However, the makers could not proceed to shoot the main hostage scenes inside the premises of the store due to legal matters. But the team had come up with a makeshift set of an Apple store where the filming took place.

2) Katwijk, Amsterdam

A still from 'iHostage' | Image via @Youtube/Netflix

Since the shooting could not happen inside the Apple Store, a makeshift set was created in an air dock at Katwijk, Amsterdam.

The set was remodeled with a high level of care and precision to give it a sense of the interior of a real Apple Store. In order to merge in with the ethos of the Leidseplein Square, a customized pavement was also built, along with several LED screens of around 6 meters in height that have been incorporated to showcase the visuals of Leidseplein Square.

3) Leidseplein Square, Amsterdam

And lastly, the Leidseplein Square is an imperative filming location of the film.

All the open-air sequences have been shot in this lively part of Amsterdam. The crew had explored the area extensively and had done maximum utilization of the possibilities the area had offered. In order to bring the element of realism into the film, the crew had to bear some challenges as well.

Reportedly, there have been some interruptions in the plans created by the production team, as there were some rules that they had to abide by. Filming of the square could only be done on specific days in a week, that is, on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.

In order to have a seamless filming process as well as not to cause any disturbance in public life, the team of iHostage had several discussions with the municipality, the GVD transport company, and the cops about exploring and shooting in the area. Along with that, some rerouting of the tramway traffic was also regulated in order to enable the crew to film some magnified sequences of some important scenes of the film, such as when the elite troops enter the scene.