List of films set in Los Angeles

Below a list of films set in Los Angeles. The list is not complete, and also includes a number of films which only have a tenuous connection to the city. For instance, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure is set in San Dimas, a suburb that is over ten miles to the east of the city's boundaries. This may reflect a view held by many, that Los Angeles has no real boundaries and is not so much a city as a loosely defined collection of communities. The film Inception is set in locations all over the world, and mostly takes place in the imagination, but its ending is set in Los Angeles and so is included in the list. Other films have less to do with the physical city than with an imaginary or mythical Los Angeles. For example, Bladerunner makes use of some LA locations, but is largely the invention of the film's makers.

1920s

• Hollywood (1923)
• Souls for Sale (1923)
• Sherlock Jr. (1924)
• Show People (1928)

1930s

• What Price Hollywood? (1932)
• A Star Is Born (1937)

1940s

• Sullivan's Travels (1941)
• Saboteur (1942)

Stanwyck and MacMurray of Billy Wilder's Double Indemnity

• Double Indemnity (1944)
• Murder, My Sweet (1944)
• Mildred Pierce (1945)
• The Big Sleep (1946)
• The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)
• The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947)
• He Walked by Night (1948)
• Criss Cross (1949)
• White Heat (1949)

1950s

The actual painted boulevard name was used as the opening titles of the classic film-noir drama, Sunset Boulevard

• Sunset Boulevard (1950)
• The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)
• Singin' in the Rain (1952)
• How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)
• The War of the Worlds (1953)
• A Star Is Born (1954)
• Them! (1954)
• The Big Knife (1955)
• Kiss Me Deadly (1955)
• Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
• Indestructible Man (1956)
• Gang War (1958)
• Girl on the Run (1958)
• The Crimson Kimono (1959)

1960s

• A Bucket of Blood (1960)
• The Little Shop of Horrors (1960)
• The Exiles (1961)
• The Three Stooges in Orbit (1962)
• What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
• Muscle Beach Party (1964)
• The Loved One (1965)
• Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966)
• Lord Love a Duck (1966)
• Don't Make Waves (1967)
• The Graduate (1967)
• Point Blank (1967)
• Valley of the Dolls (1967)
• Targets (1968)
• Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)
• Easy Rider (1969)
• Model Shop (1969)
• They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969)

1970s

• Alex in Wonderland (1970)
• Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)
• Halls of Anger (1970)
• Diamonds are Forever (1971)
• Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
• Kotch (1971)
• Minnie and Moskowitz (1971)
• The Omega Man (1971)
• Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971)
• The New Centurions (1972)
• The Long Goodbye (1973)
• Save the Tiger (1973)
• Blazing Saddles (1974)
• Chinatown (1974)
• Earthquake (1974)
• Gone in 60 Seconds (1974)
• A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
• The Day of the Locust (1975)
• Dolemite (1975)
• Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
• Shampoo (1975)
• Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)
• The Bad News Bears (1976)
• Car Wash (1976)
• Gable and Lombard (1976)
• Gus (1976)
• Mother, Jugs & Speed (1976)
• A Star Is Born (1976)
• Trackdown (1976)
• Two-Minute Warning (1976)
• Welcome to L.A. (1976)
• Grand Theft Auto (1977)
• The Driver (1978)
• Grease (1978)
• Heaven Can Wait (1978)
• Killer of Sheep (1978)
• Thank God It's Friday (1978)
• Up in Smoke (1978)
• 1941 (1979)
• Boulevard Nights (1979)
• The China Syndrome (1979)
• Hardcore (1979)
• The Onion Field (1979)
• Roller Boogie (1979)
• Skatetown, U.S.A. (1979)

1980s

• 9 to 5 (1980)
• Airplane! (1980)
• Midnight Madness (1980)
• Seems Like Old Times (1980)
• Xanadu (1980)
• Carbon Copy (1981)
• The Decline of Western Civilization (1981)
• The Four Seasons (1981)
• Mommie Dearest (1981)
• S.O.B. (1981)
• True Confessions (1981)
• Zoot Suit (1981)
• Blade Runner (1982)
• Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
• Frances (1982)
• Grease 2 (1982) (local suburbs, e.g. Hawthorne)
• I Ought to Be in Pictures (1982)
• White Dog (1982)
• Blue Thunder (1983)
• Mr. Mom (1983)
• The Star Chamber (1983)
• Trading Places (1983)
• Valley Girl (1983)
• Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
• Body Double (1984)
• Crimes of Passion (1984)
• Falling in Love (1984)
• Irreconcilable Differences (1984)
• The Karate Kid (1984)
• Night of the Comet (1984)
• Protocol (1984)
• Repo Man (1984)
• Swing Shift (1984)
• The Terminator (1984)
• 8 Million Ways to Die (1985)
• Back to the Future (1985) (Universal City, California)
• Fletch (1985)
• Into the Night (1985)
• Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)
• To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
• Tuff Turf (1985)
• Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986)
• Echo Park (1986)
• The Karate Kid Part II (1986)
• Modern Girls (1986)
• Ruthless People (1986)
• That's Life! (1986)
• Barfly (1987)
• Beverly Hills Cop II (1987)
• Born in East L.A. (1987)
• Dirty Dancing (1987)
• Dragnet (1987)
• The Hidden (1987)
• La Bamba (1987)
• Less Than Zero (1987)
• Lethal Weapon (1987)
• Maid to Order (1987)
• Mannequin (1987)
• Overboard (1987)
• The Running Man (1987)
• Summer School (1987)
• Big Business (1988)
• Colors (1988)
• The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988)
• Die Hard (1988)
• Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)
• Earth Girls Are Easy (1988)
• For Keeps (1988)
• License To Drive (1988)
• Miracle Mile (1988)
• The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
• Tango and Cash
• Stand and Deliver (1988)
• Sunset (1988)
• Tequila Sunrise (1988)
• They Live (1988)
• Twins (1988)
• Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
• Back to the Future Part II (Universal City, California) (1989)
• Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
• Chances Are (1989)
• The Karate Kid Part III (1989)
• Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)
• Miracle Mile (1989)
• Skin Deep (1989)
• Troop Beverly Hills (1989)

1990s

1990

• Back to the Future Part III (Universal City, California)
• Internal Affairs
• Predator 2
• Pretty Woman
• To Sleep with Anger
• The Two Jakes

1991

• Barton Fink
• Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time
• Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey
• Boyz n the Hood
• The Doors
• Father of the Bride
• Grand Canyon
• L.A. Story
• The Last Boy Scout
• McBain
• Night on Earth
• Point Break
• The Rocketeer
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day

1992

• American Me
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Death Becomes Her
• Deep Cover
• Encino Man
• Lethal Weapon 3
• The Player
• Passenger 57
• Reservoir Dogs
• South Central
• Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot
• White Men Can't Jump

1993

• The Beverly Hillbillies
• Blood In Blood Out
• Bound by Honor
• Falling Down
• Last Action Hero
• Menace II Society
• Mi Vida Loca
• My Girl 2
• The Mask
• Poetic Justice
• Rising Sun
• Rookie of the Year (select scenes)
• The Sandlot
• Short Cuts
• True Romance

1994

• Airheads
• Beverly Hills Cop III
• Clifford
• Color of Night
• Double Dragon
• Ed Wood
• Floundering
• Jimmy Hollywood
• The Little Rascals
• Mi Vida Loca
• Murder Was The Case
• Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult
• The Next Karate Kid
• Pulp Fiction
• Speed
• Swimming with Sharks
• Wes Craven's New Nightmare

1995

• Clueless
• Devil in a Blue Dress
• Father of the Bride Part II
• Friday
• Get Shorty
• Heat
• Higher Learning
• Leaving Las Vegas
• Live Nude Girls
• My Family, Mi Familia
• The Net
• Nick of Time
• Strange Days
• Tales from the Hood

1996

• 2 Days in the Valley
• Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
• Escape from L.A.
• Get on the Bus
• Independence Day
• Kazaam
• Last Man Standing
• Mulholland Falls
• Set It Off
• Spy Hard
• Swingers
• A Thin Line Between Love and Hate

1997

• Air Force One
• Bean
• Beverly Hills Ninja
• Boogie Nights
• Face/Off
• Jackie Brown
• L.A. Confidential
• Lost Highway
• Money Talks
• One Eight Seven
• Speed 2: Cruise Control
• Steel
• Volcano

1998

• American History X
• The Big Lebowski
• Blade
• Bulworth
• Caught Up
• City of Angels
• Gods and Monsters
• Hurlyburly
• L.A. Without a Map
• Lethal Weapon 4
• A Night at the Roxbury
• The Players Club
• Playing by Heart
• The Rugrats Movie
• Rush Hour
• Slums of Beverly Hills
• Twilight

1999

• 8mm
• Bellyfruit
• Blast from the Past
• Blue Streak
• Bowfinger
• Free Enterprise
• Go
• Hot Boyz
• Magnolia
• The Muse
• South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (select scenes)
• Sugar Town
• The Thirteenth Floor
• The Wood

2000s

2000

• The Anniversary Party
• Big Momma's House
• Bread and Roses
• Brother
• Disney's The Kid
• Gone in 60 Seconds
• Hanging Up
• Hellraiser: Inferno
• Lost Souls
• Love & Basketball
• Next Friday
• Rugrats in Paris: The Movie
• Scream 3
• Traffic
• What's Cooking?

2001

• Baby Boy
• Bandits
• Crazy/Beautiful
• Crocodile Dundee in Los Angeles
• Dogtown and Z-Boys
• The Fast and the Furious
• Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
• Joe Dirt
• Made
• Mulholland Drive
• Rush Hour 2
• Southlander
• Swordfish
• Training Day
• The Wash

2002

• Austin Powers in Goldmember
• Black Knight
• Collateral Damage
• Dark Blue
• Friday After Next
• Laurel Canyon
• Nothing So Strange
• Punch-Drunk Love
• Real Women Have Curves
• The Salton Sea
• XXX

2003

• Biker Boyz
• Confidence
• The Core
• Cradle 2 the Grave
• Freaky Friday
• Holes
• Hollywood Homicide
• Honey
• Hulk
• The Italian Job
• Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood
• Los Angeles Plays Itself
• Malibu's Most Wanted
• A Man Apart
• Matchstick Men
• National Security
• Rugrats Go Wild
• Stuck on You
• S.W.A.T.
• Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
• Thirteen
• Wonderland

2004

• The Aviator
• Cellular
• A Cinderella Story
• Collateral
• The Day After Tomorrow
• Ray
• Sideways
• Soul Plane
• Starsky & Hutch
• Superbabies: Baby Geniuses 2

2005

• The 40-Year-Old Virgin
• Be Cool
• Black Dawn
• Constantine
• Crash
• Dirty
• Goal!
• Happy Endings
• Herbie: Fully Loaded
• The Island
• Kiss Kiss Bang Bang
• Lords of Dogtown
• Monster-in-Law
• The Sandlot 2
• Shopgirl
• Torque
• XXX: State of the Union

2006

• 10.5: Apocalypse
• Belly 2: Millionaire Boyz Club
• Big Momma's House 2
• The Black Dahlia
• Bring It On: All or Nothing
• Click
• Crank
• Friends with Money
• Gridiron Gang
• Harsh Times
• The Holiday
• Hollywoodland
• Inland Empire
• Jackass Number Two
• Little Miss Sunshine
• Man About Town
• Nearing Grace
• Quinceañera
• Snakes on a Plane
• Waist Deep
• X-Men: The Last Stand

2007

• 1408
• Alvin and The Chipmunks
• The Apocalypse
• Bratz: The Movie
• Dragon Wars
• Fracture
• Freedom Writers
• The Hammer
• Invasion of the Pod People
• Knocked Up
• Nancy Drew
• Rush Hour 3
• The Sandlot: Heading Home
• Smiley Face
• Southland Tales
• There Will Be Blood
• Transformers
• Urban Justice

2008

• Ace of Hearts
• Another Cinderella Story
• Bedtime Stories
• Beverly Hills Chihuahua
• Bolt
• Changeling
• Drillbit Taylor
• Eagle Eye
• The Eye
• Forgetting Sarah Marshall
• Garden Party
• Get Smart
• Hancock
• Iron Man
• Lakeview Terrace
• Quarantine
• Role Models
• Street Kings
• Sunday School Musical
• The Take
• Taken
• War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave

2009

• 17 Again
• 2012
• 2012: Supernova
• 500 Days of Summer
• All About Steve)
• Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
• Crank: High Voltage
• Crossing Over
• Fast & Furious
• Funny People
• G-Force
• I Love You, Man
• The Informers
• Land of the Lost
• My Sister's Keeper
• Notorious
• Obsessed
• The Soloist
• Spread
• Terminator Salvation
• Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
• The Ugly Truth
• Zombieland
• A Single Man

2010s

2010

• 30 Days of Night: Dark Days
• The A-Team
• Beginners
• Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore
• Cyrus
• Despicable Me
• Get Him to the Greek
• Greenberg
• Horrorween
• Inception
• Iron Man 2
• Jackass 3D
• The Kids Are All Right
• The Losers
• Mega Shark Versus Crocosaurus
• Resident Evil: Afterlife
• The Runaways
• Skyline
• Takers
• Tooth Fairy
• Tron: Legacy
• Valentine's Day

2011

• The Artist
• Battle: Los Angeles
• Battle of Los Angeles
• Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2
• Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son
• Born to Be a Star
• Cross
• Drive
• Friends with Benefits
• From Prada to Nada
• Ghost Shark 2: Urban Jaws
• The Green Hornet
• Green Lantern
• The Hit List
• Hop
• Horrible Bosses
• In Time
• Insidious
• Jack and Jill
• Just Go with It
• Larry Crowne
• The Lincoln Lawyer
• Mega Python vs. Gatoroid
• The Muppets
• No Strings Attached
• The Pool Boys
• Princess and the Pony
• Prom
• The Roommate
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon

2012

• Argo
• Caroline and Jackie
• Celeste and Jesse Forever
• End of Watch
• The Guest House
• Hitchcock
• Project X
• Seven Psychopaths
• Sound of My Voice
• Taken 2

2013

• Age of Dinosaurs
• Bad Words
• The Bling Ring
• The Call
• The Canyons
• Despicable Me 2
• Fast & Furious 6
• Gangster Squad
• Her
• Iron Man 3
• The Purge
• Saving Mr. Banks
• This Is the End

2014

• Android Cop
• Cake
• Chef
• The Gambler
• Horrible Bosses 2
• Inherent Vice
• Let's Be Cops
• The Liquid Psychologist
• Million Dollar Arm
• Nightcrawler
• The Purge: Anarchy
• Welcome to Me

2015

• Blackhat
• Day Out of Days
• Entourage
• French Dirty
• Furious 7
• Get Hard
• The Gift
• Lavalantula
• San Andreas
• Straight Outta Compton
• Taken 3
• Terminator Genisys
• Too Late
• Trumbo
• We Are Your Friends
• Weepah Way For Now
• Woman in Gold

2016

• Hail, Caesar!
• Knight of Cups
• The Neon Demon
• The Nice Guys

Los Angeles destroyed on film

• The War of the Worlds (1953) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
• Earthquake (1974) (destroyed by an earthquake)
• Night of the Comet (1984) (destroyed by a comet)
• The Terminator (1984) (destroyed by artificially intelligent machines)
• The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990) (destroyed by an earthquake)
• Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) (destroyed by a nuclear bomb)
• Double Dragon (1994) (destroyed by a major earthquake in 2007)
• Escape from L.A. (1996) (destroyed by a major earthquake and tsunami in 2000)
• Independence Day (1996) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
• Volcano (1997) (destroyed by a large volcano)
• Tycus (2000) (destroyed by a piece of the Moon after being hit by comet Tycus)
• The Day After Tomorrow (2004) (destroyed by a series of massive tornadoes)
• 10.5: Apocalypse (2006) (destroyed by an earthquake)
• The Apocalypse (2007) (destroyed by a meteor shower)
• Dragon Wars (2007) (destroyed by a giant monster attack)
• Transformers (2007) (destroyed by a series of giant robots)
• Life After People (2008) (disintegration)
• War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave (2008) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
• 2012 (2009) (destroyed by a massive earthquake)
• 2012: Supernova (2009) (destroyed by a supernova)
• Zombieland (2009) (destroyed by a zombie apocalypse)
• Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010) (destroyed by an epidemic)
• Skyline (2010) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
• Battle: Los Angeles (2011) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
• This Is the End (2013) (destroyed by the Rapture)
• San Andreas (2015) (destroyed by a massive earthquake)

See also

• Los Angeles in popular culture
• List of television shows set in Los Angeles
• Lists of films based on location
• Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003), a documentary about the representation of Los Angeles on film