Fairhaven High Grad Goes Back To School For Paul Giamatti Movie

A film crew, including actor Paul Giamatti, wrapped up shooting Friday morning at the Wamsutta Club in New Bedford and shifted production over to Fairhaven High School.

The plan calls for nearly 24 hours of filming at the 117-year-old school for major motion picture The Holdovers.

One member of the crew got the surprise of her career when she first noticed that a good portion of the movie was going to be filmed at her alma mater.

Jordan Costa, a 2015 FHS graduate, joined Michael and Maddie this morning on her way into work on the set.

When she graduated from University of Rhode Island, Costa thought she'd have to move out to Los Angeles to get work, but she has been quite busy with movie productions happening right here in Massachusetts.

She says she's worked on a number of different productions for Netflix, Apple Studios and now Miramax, among others.  She's worked on a couple of Hallmark films, the Academy Award-nominated Don't Look Up (partially filmed in Fall River), and Chili (filmed in Worcester).

"Boston is quickly becoming the next Hollywood," says Costa. "There are so many different productions around right now which is just awesome for local people like me."

When Jordan got hired for The Holdovers, as health and safety secretary, she had no idea they'd be filming at her high school. She was floored when she spotted Fairhaven High on the locations map. She quickly began campaigning at Miramax to make sure she'd be working on the set Friday at FHS.

Costa told us that filming will only take place inside the school. The exterior shots of the fictitious boarding school in the movie have already been shot at Deerfield Academy.

"The first person I told when I found out this was happening was my media teacher at Fairhaven High, Drew Furtado. It's such a full-circle moment for me," said Jordan.  "If I think about it too much I start to cry."

The Holdovers takes place in the 1970s. The plot calls for a grouchy, unpopular English teacher named Paul Hunham (played by Giamatti) staying back during Christmas break to keep an eye on "the holdovers" who can't make it home for the holiday. D'Avine Joy Randolph will play the school's cook.

Costa says she has had two interactions with Giamatti, and the actor was "super nice both times."  She says she had to help the actor download an app onto his iPhone.

The film is expected to be released in time for Christmas 2023.