21 Movies Filmed in Real Abandoned Locations

Filmmakers frequently choose real, rundown locations to create a sense of decay and emptiness. Shooting in actual abandoned buildings – like old malls or hospitals – adds a realistic, gritty feel that’s hard to achieve on a soundstage. These places are ideal for horror and stories set in bleak futures, and the history within their walls helps build suspense and strengthen the story.

‘The Blues Brothers’ (1980)

The filmmakers famously filmed a thrilling car chase at the abandoned Dixie Square Mall in Illinois, completely demolishing the building in the process. The mall had been closed for over a year, and the crew not only brought it back to life for the shoot but also dramatically wrecked it. During the sequence, stunt drivers crashed police cars right through the storefronts, shattering glass at high speeds. It’s still considered one of the most impressively destructive practical stunts ever filmed.

‘Session 9’ (2001)

As a real cinema fan, I was completely captivated by the atmosphere of this psychological horror. What really struck me was that it was filmed on location at the actual Danvers State Hospital in Massachusetts – a seriously imposing, gothic building with a long history of being rumored to be haunted! It was incredible to learn they filmed right before they started tearing down huge parts of the old asylum to build apartments. The place itself, with its peeling paint and creepy tunnels, was so genuinely terrifying that they barely needed any special effects – it was all right there in the building’s history and decay.

‘The Abyss’ (1989)

For the film, James Cameron transformed an unfinished nuclear power plant in South Carolina into a huge underwater filming location. The crew pumped in millions of gallons of water to recreate the ocean floor, enabling them to achieve realistic lighting and a sense of depth for the complex underwater scenes. The site’s massive size was perfect for the large-scale science fiction story, though it was eventually left unused again after filming.

‘Gone Girl’ (2014)

For scenes depicting economic hardship, director David Fincher chose the Hawthorne Plaza Mall in California. The overgrown weeds and vacant shops visually represented the characters’ financial downfall. The mall’s large size and abandoned look have made it a popular filming location for many movies, and its bleak atmosphere was a perfect fit for the thriller’s dark mood.

‘Full Metal Jacket’ (1987)

For his film, Stanley Kubrick transformed a rundown London gas factory, slated for demolition, into a realistic depiction of war-torn Hue. He was able to use the buildings for explosive combat scenes, and his art team added details like palm trees and Vietnamese signs to convincingly recreate the Vietnamese city. This created a raw and gritty feel for the film’s urban warfare sequences.

‘Shutter Island’ (2010)

Martin Scorsese filmed scenes for his thriller at the abandoned Medfield State Hospital in Massachusetts, using its brick buildings to represent the Ashecliffe Hospital for the criminally insane. The hospital’s isolated location and unsettling architecture were perfect for the movie’s atmosphere. Fog and rain were added to increase the creepiness of the already spooky location, and the imposing buildings helped build suspense throughout the film.

‘The Road’ (2009)

The film powerfully depicted the world after the apocalypse by shooting on a closed section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Director John Hillcoat also used areas of New Orleans that were still damaged from Hurricane Katrina, adding to the sense of real devastation. Because the tunnels and highways were already abandoned, very little needed to be done to make them look completely deserted. These genuine locations helped highlight the father and son’s desperate and hopeless journey.

‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon’ (2011)

Michael Bay filmed spectacular action scenes inside Detroit’s historic Michigan Central Station. The station’s beautiful, old-fashioned architecture created a striking contrast with the futuristic robot fights in the movie. The location emphasized Detroit’s past industrial struggles while also providing a visually impressive setting. The film captured the station in its deteriorated condition, preserving it on screen before recent restoration work started.

‘The Hunger Games’ (2012)

The bleak setting of District 12 in the movies was brought to life at the abandoned Henry River Mill Village in North Carolina. The old wooden houses were a perfect match for the coal mining town described in the book. Filmmakers cleaned up the area and reinforced the buildings to make it safe for filming. Today, the location is a popular spot for fans of the series to visit.

‘RoboCop’ (1987)

The final showdown between the cyborg officer and ED-209 took place at the abandoned Monessen Steel Works in Pennsylvania. The decaying factory, with its widespread rust and disrepair, created the film’s bleak and gritty look. Smoke and steam rising from the factory floor heightened the sense of a dark and overwhelming Future Detroit, and emphasized the story’s central idea of industrial decline.

‘Girl, Interrupted’ (1999)

As a fan, I was really blown away learning where they filmed this drama! They actually used the abandoned buildings of Harrisburg State Hospital in Pennsylvania. It was incredible – they filmed in the real administration offices and old wards to create the look of a mental institution in the 1960s. The hospital’s original architecture just added so much to the story, making it feel really heavy and steeped in history. It definitely helped the actors give more believable performances, having a real, tangible place to work with.

‘It Follows’ (2014)

The horror movie was filmed in the massive, ruined Packard Automotive Plant in Detroit, creating a consistently unsettling and eerie atmosphere. The plant’s decaying concrete and broken windows visually represented a sense of ruin and decline. As characters are chased by something they can’t see, the plant’s huge, empty spaces emphasize the protagonist’s loneliness and isolation.

‘Sucker Punch’ (2011)

Zack Snyder used the historic Lennox House in Montreal as a filming location for his fantasy action movie. This building, once a hospital and asylum, offered the unsettling hallways and rooms perfect for portraying a mental institution. Its gothic design helped create the film’s dark and dreamlike atmosphere, and effectively made it hard to tell what was real and what was happening inside the characters’ minds.

‘Death Tunnel’ (2005)

This horror movie was filmed entirely at the real Waverly Hills Sanatorium in Kentucky, a place famous for being one of the most haunted in the US. The sanatorium has a dark history, once housing many patients with tuberculosis. The filmmakers used the building’s creepy features, like the ‘body chute’ and old patient rooms, to create frightening scenes. The building’s natural state of disrepair also played a key role in the story, almost like another character.

‘Chappie’ (2015)

For the gang’s hideout in his film, Neill Blomkamp selected the abandoned Kempton Park Power Station in Johannesburg. Its huge cooling towers and old machinery gave the movie a futuristic, ‘cyberpunk’ look, especially for the robot character. The rundown, dirty condition of the station made the science fiction elements feel more realistic and highlighted the contrast between advanced technology and the city’s decay.

‘Tenet’ (2020)

As a movie fanatic, I was really struck by the opening sequence of that film – it was shot at this incredible place in Tallinn called Linnahall. It’s a huge concrete building originally made for the 1980 Olympics, but it had been left to decay, which actually added to the vibe. The architecture – it’s this really stark, imposing style – was perfect for the complicated time-bending stuff they were doing. Honestly, seeing those empty, dusty seats and just the sheer size of the place really helped sell the idea of this massive, secret operation happening right under everyone’s nose.

‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ (2010)

I was so impressed with how realistic the new slasher film looked! I later found out they actually shot a lot of it at the old Lincoln Heights Jail in Los Angeles – a place that’s been used for tons of movies needing a genuine prison vibe. That jail is seriously creepy, with its cramped spaces and peeling paint, and it really added to the tension, especially during those intense boiler room scenes and dream sequences. Plus, the location was already so naturally grimy, they didn’t even need to do much to make it look the part – it was perfect!

‘Grave Encounters’ (2011)

This horror movie was filmed entirely on location at the Riverview Hospital in Coquitlam, a former mental health facility. After the hospital closed, it became a popular spot for filmmakers. The long hallways and empty rooms were perfect for creating a confusing and unsettling environment, and the filmmakers used the hospital’s naturally eerie atmosphere to build tension and suspense.

‘Constantine’ (2005)

The final, dramatic showdown was filmed at the old Pigeon Creek Thermo-Electric Plant in California. The plant’s decaying walkways and machinery created a sense of entering another world. Director Francis Lawrence used the massive size of the facility to visually represent a hellish environment right on Earth. The plant’s ruined condition perfectly reflected the serious, otherworldly dangers faced by the characters.

‘Hostel’ (2005)

Eli Roth shot the gruesome torture scenes in an abandoned section of the Bohnice Psychiatric Hospital in Prague. The crumbling walls and cold tile floors made the environment feel both horrifying and disturbingly clean. The location’s unsettling atmosphere reportedly affected the actors and crew while filming, adding to the on-screen violence.

‘Silent Hill’ (2006)

For the film, the abandoned Hearn Generating Station in Toronto was made to look like a foggy, nightmarish town. The huge, old power plant provided the perfect industrial setting for scenes set in the Otherworld. Its rusty metal and vast interior spaces closely matched the look and feel of the original video game, making this adaptation remarkably true to its source material.

Tell us which of these atmospheric locations you found the most unsettling in the comments.

2025-12-01 14:45