The home exterior of Leo and Shelly Johnson had two different film locations in Twin Peaks. The Pilot Episode and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me exterior location used a home in Snoqualmie, Washington. For Seasons 1 and 2, the crew used a spot located in southern California.
The Johnson home was once located at 29337 Lake Vista Drive in Agoura Hills, California. Unfortunately, the original home was demolished several years ago. While the home is long gone, there are echoes of the past that can be seen in the area today. Agoura Hills is a hot spot for Twin Peaks film locations (more on that later).
The home interiors from Seasons 1 and 2 were shot on a set in southern California.
The home was situated on the shore of Mailbou Lake. Homes around the lake are part of the Malibou Lake Mountain Club, a private lake and residential community of custom houses nestled in the Santa Monica Mountains between the Conejo Valley and beaches of Mailbu. The private community was established in 1922 (so please no trespassing).
The first time we see the Johnson home in Season 1 is from Episode 1001. Shelly exits the house and speaks with Leo who is cleaning his truck.
You can see some homes across the lake in both of these scenes from Episode 1001.
The circled home can be seen in the distance during Shelly’s entrance.
The area looked much different in the early 1990s. The road in the foreground is actually Lake Vista Drive.
Recent images from Google Maps Street View show the area is now covered with trees and overgrown brush. A white fence is also seen along Lake Vista Drive (noticeable in other episodes of Twin Peaks – more on that later).
I created a collage using an aerial view from Google Maps of where select scenes may have been shot.
When Albert Rosenfield and his team arrive in Episode 2001, the camera looks back from the Johnson house across Lake Vista Drive.
The home in the distance is still standing as of 2016. You can see the bottom right corner window area of the house in the episode.
Most likely this scene from Episode 2007 of a truck passing the house on Lake Vista Drive was shot on the small ridge across the street.
The same is probably true for these scenes from Episode 1006 where Leo Johnson watches Bobby Briggs meeting Shelly at the front door. It appears Lake Vista Drive is also in the foreground.
This driveway across the street was probably the spot the crew used during the shoot.
Below are some other shots of the former Johnson House from the Seasons 1 and 2. It stinks I’ll never be able to get photographs from the area that exactly match the on screen images.
Like so many other film locations, I must give credit to Charles from the former InTwinPeaks.com website. He had a post about the Johnson House that combined both the Washington State and California locations. I present the California portion below as a tribute to his outstanding work. Luckily, he visited the area before the trees and shrubs took over.
Related articles about The Johnson House:
- Vacant Peaks – The Johnson House – Part 1
- Vacant Peaks – The Johnson House – Part 2
- Quit Worrying and Start Scurrying, Mr. Touchdown
- This Is Where We Live (in Washington State), Shelly
