How ‘Roofman’ Rebuilt an Authentic Toys ‘R’ Us

The magic of cinema often lies in its ability to transport us to another time and place. For the film Roofman, which tells the incredible true story of a man who hid inside a Toys ‘R’ Us for months, authenticity was paramount. Director Derek Cianfrance’s commitment to realism presented his production team with a monumental challenge: how do you recreate a fully functional, period-accurate Toys ‘R’ Us from 2004, years after the iconic retailer ceased most of its operations?

Let’s dive into the incredible story behind the Roofman Toys ‘R’ Us set design. We will uncover the immense challenges the creative team faced, their meticulous attention to detail in sourcing thousands of vintage toys, and the cinematic magic required to bring a beloved piece of the past back to life for the big screen.

The Challenge: Building a Ghost from Scratch

The film follows the true story of Jeffrey Manchester (played by Channing Tatum), a former Army Reserve officer who robbed McDonald’s restaurants by entering through their roofs. After being caught and imprisoned, he escaped and famously hid for months inside a local Toys ‘R’ Us, creating a secret hideout behind a bike rack.

To capture this story authentically, director Derek Cianfrance insisted on using a real, tangible environment. He wanted Channing Tatum to be able to interact with the set organically, grabbing any toy off any shelf. This meant the production couldn’t rely on CGI or partially dressed sets. They needed to build a complete, fully stocked, 24,000-square-foot Toys ‘R’ Us store.

Production designer Inbal Weinberg led a nationwide search for a surviving location. After the company’s bankruptcy in 2018, most stores were gutted and repurposed. The team eventually found a deserted former Toys ‘R’ Us building near their filming location in Charlotte, North Carolina. However, it was just an empty shell. “There was nothing there,” Weinberg explained. “The floor had been scraped, and we really had to start from scratch.”

Sourcing a Generation’s Worth of Toys

Cianfrance’s directive was clear: “I want Channing to be able to walk around and grab whatever he wants, and if he grabs something, behind that something needs to be another item.” This meant every shelf, in every aisle, had to be layered deep with real, period-accurate toys from 2004.

This task was Herculean. The art department embarked on a massive research and acquisition project.

• Period-Accurate Research: The team gathered thousands of images and old Toys ‘R’ Us catalogs from the early 2000s to ensure every product was authentic. They even watched old employee instructional videos to understand the store’s layout, branding, and culture.
• The Great Toy Hunt: Sourcing thousands of vintage toys was a logistical puzzle. The team debated whether to fabricate replicas or buy originals. Ultimately, they scoured online marketplaces, collector forums, and vintage shops to find everything they needed.
• Iconic Finds: Their efforts paid off. The shelves were filled with nostalgic treasures, including Tickle Me Elmo dolls, Bad Buggy toy cars, and even a Hillary Clinton Barbie doll, all perfectly capturing the 2004 toy landscape.

More Than Just Toys: Creating an Immersive World

Beyond stocking the shelves, the team had to make the store feel like a living, breathing retail space that changed over time. Since Jeffrey Manchester hid in the store for several months, the environment needed to reflect the passing seasons.

The art department designed and produced a full suite of seasonal graphics. The store’s signage and displays were updated to show back-to-school sales, then Halloween promotions, and finally Thanksgiving and holiday-themed sections. This detail was crucial for visually grounding the film’s timeline and showing the passage of time from within the static environment of the store.

Building the Roofman’s Nest

A key part of the Roofman Toys ‘R’ Us set design was recreating Manchester’s secret living space. Based on police files and direct conversations between the director and Manchester himself, the hideout was located in the wall behind a bike display rack.

Weinberg and her team worked closely with the director and cinematographer Andrij Parekh to design this space. The goal was to create a place that felt both like a cramped hideout and a personal “cocoon.” It was important for the space to feel as if Tatum’s character had built it himself. Over the course of the film, the small, hidden area gradually transforms into a warm and surprisingly cozy nest, filled with items taken from the store. This visual evolution of the hideout is central to the character’s journey.

In a fun, meta moment, the crew even included a little surprise for the film’s star. Hidden among the action figures on the shelves was a Marvel figure of Gambit—the X-Men character Channing Tatum was famously attached to play for years. This inside joke provided a cute moment for Tatum to discover his own action figure on set.

The Final Product: A Portal to the Past

The effort to rebuild the Toys ‘R’ Us store was a monumental feat of production design. By starting from a bare-bones structure and meticulously layering every detail, from the flooring to the thousands of individual toys, the Roofman team created more than just a set. They built a time machine.

This commitment to practical filmmaking provides an immersive and tangible world for both the actors and the audience. It allows for a level of performance and discovery that simply isn’t possible with digital environments. The dedication of Inbal Weinberg and her team ensures that when audiences watch Roofman, they won’t just be watching a story—they’ll be stepping back into the magical, colorful, and very real world of a 2004 Toys ‘R’ Us.