Sitcom 'A.P. Bio' shoots scenes in Toledo, Huntington Center

11/16/2017

Jacob McCarthy, left, who plays Devin, and Tom Bennett, right, who plays Miles, ride the zamboni while shooting a scene for "A.P. Bio," which was written by Mike O’Brien, a 1995 graduate of St. John’s Jesuit High School.

The Blade/Amy E. Voigt
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Expect the Toledo Walleye to make an appearance in the upcoming NBC sitcom A.P. Bio.

PropertiesCamera crews for the midseason replacement series filmed scenes at the Huntington Center on Thursday, while an arena full of schoolchildren cheered on the home team in a morning game against the Fort Wayne Komets. Director Payman Benz said the scenes from the Huntington Center are expected to localize a hockey arena scene filmed earlier in Los Angeles.

A.P. Bio follows Ivy League philosopher Jack Griffin — played by Glenn Howerton of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia — after he loses out on his dream job and picks up a position as a high school teacher. Rather than teach his honor roll students the subject material, though, he opts to leverage them for revenge against those who have wronged him.

The series is set in Toledo, accounting for the local shoot. Mike O’Brien, a writer and executive producer of the series, is a 1995 graduate of St. John’s Jesuit High School.

“I grew up hanging out in the malls and movie theaters of Toledo, so I wanted to write a story about a teacher who's gone to live elsewhere and comes back to teach here,” said Mr. O’Brien, who now lives in Los Angeles. “Using a Midwest town I knew seemed like the most logical choice.”

Camera crews shot several scenes with actors Jacob McCarthy and Tom Bennett in Toledo on Thursday. Mr. McCarthy plays student Devin, while Mr. Bennett plays Miles, a college rival to Mr. Howerton’s protagonist who believes Devin to be his son.

Mr. O’Brien said their scenes together in Toledo will come into play late in the season.

At the Huntington Center, the pair hammed it up for cameras atop the Walleye Fanboni during a break in the game, waving animatedly at the crowd and, in Mr. Bennett’s case, sporting a foam finger. Crews also spent the one-day, 12-hour shoot filming Mr. McCarthy and Mr. Bennett bonding at International Park, the Toledo Museum of Art and the Maumee Indoor Theatre.

The blending of his Los Angeles-based career and his hometown made for a fun juxtaposition for Mr. O’Brien, who said several family members joined him on set on Thursday.

“It’s been a kind of a cool emotional day,” he said.

Andi Roman, spokesman for the Walleye, said series producers reached out about a month ago to coordinate the shoot at Huntington Center. They also arranged for producer Barbara Stoll to speak with students who were participating in a Career Day at the Huntington Center before the 10:35 a.m. game began.

The A.P. Bio series pilot is set to air in early spring. Other cast members include Patton Oswalt, Lyric Lewis, Mary Sohn, Aparna Brielle, and Nick Peine, with Saturday Night Live’s Vanessa Bayer guest starring in the pilot.

Mr. O’Brien, a former Saturday Night Live writer, is joined by Lorne Michaels, Seth Meyers, Andrew Singer, and Mike Shoemaker as executive producers.

Contact Nicki Gorny at ngorny@theblade.com or 419-724-6133.