The Doug Ewing–designed Craftsman sits on Johnston Lake, the city’s only private lake — and a longtime favorite with film crews.
If the lakeside house in A Deadly Adoption felt oddly wholesome for a movie that was anything but — or if Extant’s quiet, slightly uncanny domestic scenes stuck with you more than the sci-fi spectacle — both were filmed at the same unexpected place: an inviting Craftsman estate sitting directly on Johnston Lake, Pasadena’s only private lake.
It’s the kind of location that reads instantly on screen. Calm water. Towering trees. A house that feels insulated from the outside world.
In A Deadly Adoption, starring Will Ferrell and Kristin Wiig in full Lifetime-movie satire mode, the lakefront backdrop plays it straight: serene, suburban, almost too perfect. In Extant, executive-produced by Steven Spielberg and led by Halle Berry, that same setting becomes something quieter and more unsettling, grounding the show’s futuristic storyline in a very believable, lived-in home.
Off camera, the property is just as compelling — thanks to its architecture, its rare setting, and a homeowner story that stretches back decades. And it’s currently on the market, asking $6,800,000.
