Dexter: Original Sin Filming Locations: The Sapphire Nightclub
The
location: The Sapphire Nightclub
Q.
What is it supposed to be on the show?
A. A nightclub.
Q.
Where is it supposed to be on the show?
A. In or near Miami, Florida ( based on the establishing shot, perhaps on Ocean Drive ).
Q.
When did we see it on the show?
A. We see the location in Episode 4, of Season 1, when Debra & Sofia go out clubbing, and Deb meets Gio Martino for the first time.
Debra is
acting up and stealing drinks from an expensive bottle of Dom Pérignon,
when Gio is apparently attracted by her brazen antics, and joins her at
the table.
Gio is a handsome, suave young guy, obviously wealthy, but it's clear
from the start that there must be something wrong with this picture.
Among other
things, Gio is in his mid 20s, yet is hitting on Debra, a 16-year-old
high school student. And the source of of his wealth is suspicious.
The two flirt, and before leaving, he gives Deb his phone number.
Q.
What is it actually in real life?
A. A former gay bar and dance club.
Q.
Where can I find it in real life?
A. This scene was filmed at the former Club Ripples, which is located at 5101 E. Ocean Blvd., in Long Beach, CA.
Up until 2019, when it closed, it had reportedly been a very popular gay dance club, literally across the street from the beach, in the Belmont Shore area of Long Beach.
That's less than a mile northwest of the beach where Deb & Gio abandoned
Tiffany's car.
With the club still standing empty, it made for an ideal place for the
production company to move in and film a scene involving a '90s
nightclub.
Q. How the heck did you figure out where it was?
A. As filming
was about to begin here in SoCal on the new “Dexter: Original Sin”
series, I assumed that they would no doubt return to Long Beach, where
they filmed much of the original Dexter series.
So I began monitoring online chatter about filming in Long Beach, and
one of the first places I heard about was this building, where Dexter
fans In Long Beach had posted photos and videos of the location while production was underway.
The building was tented, a sure sign that they were shooting inside rather than exterior scenes. Obviously, they were shooting some kind of club scene.
So, once the show’s episodes aired, I kept an eye out for a scene set in a disco.
It took them till the 4th episode, but a disco scene finally showed up when Debra went to the Sapphire nightclub and met Gio.
I’ve never been to
Ripples, so I’m not positive what it looks like inside. I could only
find a limited number of photos taken inside there, and most of those
were of people dancing in semi-darkness. And likewise, you don’t see
that much of the Sapphire club on the show. Just a few fast-moving glimpses. So it’s
difficult to make a comparison between the two to make sure that they
match up. I found a few similarities, but not enough to be 100% sure.
Plus, I'm not sure
whether the former furnishings in the club are still there. It is
possible the production simply brought in brand new set dressing.
And to complicate
matters, it’s a two-story venue, with a bar/lounge on the bottom floor
and the dance space on the top floor, and the two levels didn't look
alike.
But since this is the
only club scene in the series, and we know they shot at this club, it’s
only logical to assume that the scene was shot at Ripples.
