🎬 In the Series:
First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1 – “The Righteous Gemstones”
Also Featured: Same episode during the ransom drop
A nondescript North Charleston parking lot becomes the setting for one of the most pivotal moments in The Righteous Gemstones’ pilot episode. It’s here that Jesse Gemstone is first confronted by masked blackmailers in a maroon van, setting off a chain of chaos that drives the season’s central conflict. Later in the same episode, the lot is the site of the tense—and hilariously bungled—ransom drop involving Jesse, Judy, and Kelvin.
Filmed on location at the Aviation Square Shopping Center, specifically near the Checkers drive-thru at 6185 Rivers Avenue, this spot plays it straight—there’s little to no set dressing, so it looks just as it does on screen. That realism helps heighten the tension and absurdity of the scene, blending gritty parking-lot drama with the show’s signature dark comedy.
📍 In Real Life:
Aviation Square Shopping Center is a typical suburban plaza located on Rivers Avenue in North Charleston, SC, anchored by businesses like Big Lots, Roses, and Checkers. Though unassuming, it’s now a bit of holy ground for fans thanks to its role in the show’s first big criminal twist.
The Checkers parking lot remains mostly unchanged, making it a fun and instantly recognizable stop for those retracing the Gemstones’ wild ride.
📝 Fun Fact: The ransom drop scene, with the Gemstone siblings bickering and panicking in the middle of a crime, is a perfect encapsulation of the show’s tone—awkward, suspenseful, and deeply funny, all at once.