Gritty "Good Will Hunting" shooting locations are now ritzy rentals
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Photo: Erin Clark/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
It's been nearly 30 years since Matt Damon and Ben Affleck shot "Good Will Hunting" in and around South Boston, and the gritty neighborhood from the film has been replaced by million-dollar condos, big-earning tech types and plenty of brunch spots.
Why it matters: Things have changed in Boston in ways that would make Will, his buddy Chuckie Sullivan and mentor Dr. Sean Maguire tear up in their pints.
Will's dingy ground-floor one-bedroom apartment in a South Boston three-decker at 190 W. Sixth St. got renovated in 2012 and sold for $699,000 in 2017.
- Since then, the 1,000-square-foot apartment has been listed for rent at as much as $3,600 a month.
- It now features crown molding, central air and a Bertazzoni range in the renovated kitchen.
The Bunker Hill Community College professor played by Robin Williams in the movie might no longer be able to afford the house shown as his home in the movie.
- The three-bedroom, two-bathroom house at 26 Telegraph St. hasn't sold since it went for $85,000 in 1988.
- Zillow estimates the property is worth at least $1.1 million today.
Williams won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1998 in part for a speech delivered at a Boston Public Garden bench facing the lagoon.
- Damon said last year he wants there to be a bronze statue of Williams on the bench, but plans for an installation haven't moved forward.
Perhaps the most famous Dunkin' location in film history, the outlet at 1 Bow St. in Cambridge across from Harvard Yard is where Damon slapped the note with Minnie Driver's character's phone number on the window in front of his Ivy League rival.
- The "How do you like them apples?" Dunks was formerly combined with a Baskin Robbins ice cream shop. It's now the Hokkaido Ramen Santouka, where you can get pork cheek broth, but no apples.
The L Street Tavern hasn't changed much since the old days, but the pub was sold last year to new owners who have kept up traditions.
- There's still Will Hunting memorabilia on the walls and built into the tables where the cast filmed and later celebrated the movie's success.
- It was named one of USA Today's best bars in 2024.