Monroeville Mall, a staple shopping center just outside Pittsburgh and the filming site for George A. Romero’s classic film “Dawn of the Dead,” has been purchased by Walmart…
The name Monroeville Mall probably doesn’t mean much anybody living outside of the Pittsburgh area but horror movie fans definitely recognize the location. The mall served as the primary filming location for George A. Romero’s classic zombie film “Dawn of the Dead” but now the facility is under new ownership.
Walmart actually purchased the property for $34 million with plans to work with Texas-based Cypress Equities to redevelop the property.
Since Walmart was confirmed as the buyer, the company hasn’t said if it plans on demolishing and rebuilding any part of the classic mall but all of those options are on the table as part of the redevlopment.
Monroeville Mall also serves as home to the Living Dead Museum, which houses props from many of Romero’s Pittsburgh based films that also includes “Night of the Living Dead” (filmed at nearby Evans City cemetery) and “Day of the Dead” (filmed at an underground mine and storage facility in Wampum, Pennsylvania).
There’s also no word if they plan on building a Walmart location on the property but there’s currently not a Walmart in Monroeville so that seems somewhat likely. Current plans for the location are only stated as transforming Monroeville Mall into “a new retail and commercial destination.”
It’s unknown how quickly some of these plans could start unraveling but it appears the new property owners aren’t wasting any time to develop the area.
In other words when this is all done, one of the most iconic sites from horror history may be gone forever.
Until then, Monroeville Mall continues to operate business as usual so if you haven’t seen where Romero filmed one of his most critically acclaimed films, the clock may be ticking on seeing the location as it still stands today.
