Confession time: I bloody love romantic comedies. To the point where, after years of evasiveness, I’ve now stopped hiding it, and have just embraced it as a part of my personality. So, when I heard about a new rom-com hitting cinemas, one which also happens to feature endlessly gorgeous shots of Sydney on screen, you know I had to check it out. Anyone But You has been a popular word-of-mouth hit since arriving on screens, but with all due respect to the undeniably photogenic leads Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney and their electric chemistry, we reckon the real star has to be the city of Sydney. It’s admittedly an uphill battle to be the best-looking thing on screen in this film, but Sydney (the city) manages it – so with the film still drawing the crowds, here’s our (spoiler-free) guide to the Anyone But You filming locations around Sydney you can visit.
1. Palm Beach
Plenty of the film’s action happens around a very covetable house in Palm Beach, which begs two questions. One, where exactly is this house? And two, how much time are these characters wasting stuck in traffic trying to get from Palm Beach all the way to the CBD?
Sadly, we have an answer for neither of these questions, but a trip to Palm Beach is worth your time regardless. Check out the eponymous beach, quiet sanctuary The Bible Garden, or dig into brunch at The Boathouse on a visit here. Handily, it also leaves you well-placed to embrace the filming location of a true Aussie classic: Home & Away was filmed around the area.
2. The Grounds of the City
It’s more of a background extra than a featured player, but one of our favourite coffee shops in the city makes a brief cameo in the film during a scene shot outside QVB. That’s more than enough to recommend The Grounds of the City as a filming location, with the extra benefit of a fabulous cup of coffee to fuel your quest to find all these filming spots.
3. Jones Bay Wharf
We all know that Sydney is beautiful at night, and the scenes filmed around Jones Bay Wharf prove just that. With the lights of Darling Harbour and the CBD shining in the background, it’s a backdrop worthy of any great rom-com.
4. Marks Park, Bondi
With Bondi Beach in the background, Anyone But You manages to capture a slice of the Aussie beach life. The exact location of this scene, towards the end of the film, appears to be Marks Park – the giveaway is the lovely Mackenzie’s Point lookout, an ideal place to watch the sun rise, or to stop off at on your Bondi to Coogee walk. Time your visit with the annual Sculpture by the Sea festival, and it’s even better. There’s also a beach to enjoy, but given that it appears only once every seven years, you’d need some very precise timing.
5. Barrenjoey Lighthouse
Back up in Palm Beach, you see a few tantalising glimpses of Barrenjoey Lighthouse in Anyone But You, without ever getting a proper up-close look at it. Rectify that on your tour of the filming locations, because you’ll be rewarded with sumptuous views over the Pacific Ocean and NSW coast. Oh, and in keeping with the romantic comedy theme, it’s also a rather nice spot for a proposal. Just saying…
6. Sydney Opera House
Let’s face it, it’s kind of impossible to film a rom-com in Sydney and not include its most famous icon. Unsurprisingly, there’s a few key moments that happen around, or in sight of, the Sydney Opera House, which means that a) you can re-enact pivotal moments from the film when visiting and b) we can add its appearance in the film to a long list of fun facts about the Opera House, including the fact that it’s a self-cleaning building, and that it has the world’s deepest car park. Hey, when you’re the world’s most-photographed theatre, you’ve earned the right to a starring role in a rom-com.
Even more Anyone But You filming locations
There’s a few other notable spots that feature on screen, such as the Sydney Cricket Ground, Harbour Bridge, and Double Bay, but if, like me, you saw the film and were enticed by Dogberry bakery and their delicious-looking macarons, you’re going to be sadly disappointed. The bakery doesn’t exist, it’s simply named after a minor character in the Shakespeare play the film is loosely based on (Much Ado About Nothing). Try Black Star Pastry, Flour & Stone, or Lode for pastries & cakes, or Fatcaron if it’s macarons you’re hankering for. Happy hunting!