Richmond's best celebrity sightings
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Filming is set to being in Richmond this week for the coming-of-age musical from Virginia Beach native Pharrell Williams.
Why it matters: That means celebrities — like Pharrell and the film's leads, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Halle Bailey and Da'Vine Joy Randolph — will likely also be in town and possibly out and about in Richmond.
State of play: In celebration of famous people arriving, we wanted to share some of our favorite, recent-ish celebrity sightings.
Solange Knowles
- The singer, model and little sister to Beyoncé was briefly married to Richmond native Alan G. Ferguson.
- The couple came for a visit in 2017, stayed at Quirk, shopped in the Arts District and dined at Laura Lee's in South Richmond.
David Arquette
- The actor spent what was dubbed a "wild weekend" in Richmond in 2013.
- He was reportedly in town for a week to film "Field of Lost Shoes," but drew headlines for live tweeting his final weekend, which included multiple trips to strip clubs, $165 bottles of scotch, a tattoo and a trip to the zoo.
Bruce Springsteen
- The Boss played Richmond often in his early career, but it was a 2013 dinner at Mamma 'Zu (RIP) when he was in town for someone's VCU graduation that got locals all excited.
- He stayed at The Jefferson and was also spotted shopping in Carytown and dining at Joe's Inn.
Claire Danes
- The "Homeland" actress spent multiple months filming the show in Richmond in 2017.
- She was spotted shooting on East Grace Street, treated the crew to Proper Pie when they wrapped for the holiday and filmed a promotional video for the city tourism's office.
Daniel Day Lewis
- Finally, arguably Richmond's most important celebrity sighting, was Daniel Day Lewis innocently trying to eat dinner at a Shockoe Bottom steakhouse in 2011.
- A local snapped a pic, tweeted it — and unveiled to the world the highly-anticipated first look at the actor as Abraham Lincoln.
Honorable mentions:
Tracy Morgan (twice) and Kevin Hart at Mama J's, Jeff Goldblum at Buz and Ned's, Molly Ringwald at Pasture and Comfort, Daniel Radcliffe aka Harry Potter at Buckhead's and Michael Keaton, Ethan Hawke and Ewan McGregor at Lily Pad.
