Bethesda Terrace (The Avengers / John Wick 2)

Central Park has one spot where the god of thunder caught his ride home and the world’s deadliest hitman got fired over the phone — and it’s sitting right out in the open at 72nd Street. Bethesda Terrace is the park’s grand architectural centerpiece: charge your phone and head for the Lake. This hunt is pure New York movie magic.

The Scene

The Avengers (2012). The last scene of the first Avengers movie was filmed right here, on essentially the last day of production. After the Battle of New York, the whole team gathers by Bethesda Fountain to see Thor off: he says his goodbyes, takes custody of Loki and the Tesseract in an Asgardian containment case, and the two ascend in a beam of Bifrost light. Stark and Banner drive off together, Captain America rides off on his motorcycle — and the credits roll. Stand at the fountain’s rim and you’re standing where the team stood.

John Wick: Chapter 2 (2017). The film’s famous “Excommunicado” ending plays out in the terrace arcade. Wick walks through the arched passageway, phone to his ear, as Winston delivers the verdict: he’s excommunicado — banned from the Continental, with a global bounty on his head. The arcade’s arches and glowing tiled ceiling make the moment feel mythic.

The Backstory

Bethesda Terrace was designed by Calvert Vaux as part of the Greensward Plan he created with Frederick Law Olmsted — the blueprint that became Central Park. It’s one of the only formal architectural features in the park, built through the 1860s, with the fountain officially completed in 1873.

At the center stands the Angel of the Waters by sculptor Emma Stebbins — commissioned in 1864, dedicated in 1873, and the first major public-art commission in New York City awarded to a woman. The fountain celebrates the 1842 opening of the Croton Aqueduct: the lily in the angel’s hand stands for purity, and the four figures at her feet represent Peace, Health, Purity, and Temperance. At 26 feet high and 96 feet across, it’s one of the largest fountains in New York.

Don’t miss the ceiling of the arcade between the grand staircases: more than 15,000 encaustic tiles made by England’s Minton Tile Works — the only ceiling in the world made of Minton tiles, restored by the Central Park Conservancy.

What to Look For

Walk the wide staircases down from the upper terrace — the same descent Wick takes in Chapter 2 — and stop inside the arcade to look straight up at the Minton tile ceiling.

At the fountain, find the angel’s lily and the four figures below her — Peace, Health, Purity, and Temperance — then pick your spot on the rim for the Avengers farewell.

Visitor note: as of 2026, a Central Park Conservancy restoration project was underway around the terrace. Main paths were staying open, but check on-site signage for cordoned-off areas.

Getting There

Bethesda Terrace, Central Park at 72nd Street (Terrace Drive), mid-park. Take the B or C train to 72nd St (Central Park West — the closest stop) or the 6 to 77th St (east side), then walk into the park at 72nd Street toward the Lake. It’s free, and Central Park is open daily 6 AM to 1 AM. Go early if you want the arcade — and your photos — without the crowds.

Trivia

• Marvel’s Kevin Feige says the Central Park finale was shot on “essentially the last day of production” — the whole cast in costume, with onlookers going wild.
• Bethesda Terrace also hosted the rain-soaked duel between Colleen Wing and Bakuto in the second-to-last episode of Marvel’s Iron Fist — spot the same archways.
• The Angel of the Waters was the first major public-art commission in New York City awarded to a woman.
• The fountain celebrates the 1842 Croton Aqueduct; Stebbins likened the biblical Pool of Bethesda’s healing waters to the pure Croton water cascading from the fountain.

The Hunt Clue

Where heroes bid Thor farewell ‘neath the sky’s blue dome,

And Wick heard “Excommunicado” far from home —

Head down the arcade where the Minton tiles glow,

To the Angel of the Waters — the fountain’s flow.