If you've ever watched My Cousin Vinny and thought the courthouse looked like it belonged in a real Georgia small town — that's because it does. The 1992 comedy starring Joe Pesci and Marisa Tomei used the Jasper County Courthouse in Monticello, Georgia for all of its courtroom scenes, making Jasper County one of the most beloved film backdrops in Georgia history.
The Film
My Cousin Vinny tells the story of two New Yorkers wrongly accused of murder in a small Southern town, defended by Vinny Gambini — a brash New York attorney played by Pesci — who has never tried a case. Marisa Tomei won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Vinny's girlfriend Mona Lisa Vito. The film is widely considered one of the most accurate depictions of courtroom procedure ever put to film, and it remains beloved more than three decades after its release.
The Jasper County Courthouse
The production chose the Jasper County Courthouse on the Monticello square for its authentic small-town Southern character. The building is a genuine historic courthouse — not a movie set — and it still serves as Jasper County's center of government today. Interestingly, although the film is set in the fictional Beechum County, Alabama, Sheriff Farley (played by Bruce McGill) actually mentions Jasper County, Georgia by name near the end of the film.
Visiting Today
The Jasper County Courthouse still stands exactly as it did during filming. The Monticello courthouse square is a beautiful spot worth visiting in its own right — historic storefronts, local businesses, and the kind of small-town Georgia atmosphere that production crews traveled hundreds of miles to find. Stop by Morning Grind for a coffee with your film history tour.