Monroeville Mall

Pennsylvania resident film director George A. Romero burst into the horror film scene in 1968 with his black-and-white horror cult classic film, Night of the Living Dead. Breaking all sorts of film taboos and raking in a box office gross that was more than two hundred times his film budget, it was only a matter of time before the world commanded a sequel. Fast forward ten years to 1978, when he completed his next chapter in the epic zombie saga, Dawn of the Dead, which would later reach American theaters in 1979. Preconceived notions about whether the sequel would involve a graveyard, hospital, or even the damned caves of Hell itself were for nought, as Romero insisted on taking his audiences to a local mall. A mall? Not just any mall, mind you, the Monroeville Mall of Monroeville, Pennsylvania, and guess what? You can totally still visit there.

Situated at 200 Mall Circle Drive, Monroeville, PA 15146, approximately 12 to 15 miles east of downtown Pittsburgh, the Monroeville Mall didn’t just sit idly by as the unexplained zombie plague ate through humanity in Romero’s film. Two SWAT team officers, a pilot, and a television reporter flee the nearby city that’s been overrun, and their helicopter lands on the roof of the mall that has been abandoned by humans. However, it wasn’t abandoned by zombies, and instead of fleeing, the quartet seizes the momentum and cleans up the mall into a highly livable space ready to endure any forthcoming onslaughts.

Filming for the movie took place in the winter months of 1977-1978. Romero was able to secure the mall for filming on the condition that filming take place overnight, generally beginning around 10 or 11 p.m. after the mall had closed for business. The mall’s generic shopping music came on automatically every morning around 6 or 7 a.m., and rather than attempt to shut it off, Romero kept it playing because it served as the perfect soundtrack backdrop when zombies began to chew up everything. Romero was also keen on using certain mall fixtures to further along tight filming sequences, such as the zombies on the ice skating rink!

Today, the Monroeville Mall remains a historically significant shopping center in the area, although its retail landscape has changed considerably. Although the majority of the stores have come and gone, and even the ice skating rink was filled in to supply a food court, horror fans still take delight in being able to visit the mall that served as the setting for the greatest zombie sequel to the world’s greatest zombie film. However, the mall’s future is uncertain. Walmart purchased the property in 2025, and redevelopment plans have included a proposed demolition of the existing mall. As of the latest available reporting in 2026, no confirmed demolition date has been established, meaning horror fans may still have an opportunity to visit this iconic filming location.

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