The Most Iconic Movie Locations in New Orleans

A beautiful , historic city , chockablock with personality and personality , not to mention spectacular natural peach and classifiable computer architecture , New Orleans is sartor - made for the flatware screen . While more and more pic are being shot here ( thanks , tax breaks ! ) , New Orleans is a place Hollywood has always had a love affair with … even iffilmmakers have n’t always gotten everything in NOLA rightfulness . Hundreds of movies have been filmed here , set here , or both , and New Orleans is so distinctive , it ’s often a character in its own right . learn a bunch of these moving picture ( both the good and the bad ; tbh , there are a lot of spoilt 1 ) , and you ’ll soon witness locations that tend to protrude up with frequency …

Antoine’s Restaurant

This is the old family - hunt eating place in the United States ( going back to 1840 ) , and as such , it attracts fix picket like so many mosquito on a humid solar day here in August . You ’ll find Antoine ’s in films like John Grisham’sThe Clientand again inThe Pelican Brief , as well as Oliver Stone’sJFK . As one of the grandest of grande dame Creole restaurants in the city – not to mention the picturesque mirror walls and incomparable Rex Room – Antoine ’s is the go - to for that definitive New Orleans restaurant feel , particularly in period pieces .

The Audubon Zoo

Who does n’t love a movie with animals ? Well , if you ’re doing an animal motion picture in NOLA , it ’s upright you take advantage of our world - famous zoo . Also , you should probably make the moving picture about people who turn into enceinte cat in the dead of night and then obliterate a bunch of ordinary , non - cat people . Then you should title the filmCat People . That really happened . And good that it did , because it feature both a David Bowie Sung dynasty and a young Nastassja Kinski .

The Superdome

You ’ll detect the very large stadium that house the New Orleans Saints ( technically called the " Mercedes Benz Superdome " ) prominently on the NOLA skyline in almost every movie set in the city since the mid-1960s . But there ’s one picture in which the Superdome really stands out , and that ’s the notable 1976 classicThe Savage Bees , in which a deadly swarm of killer African bees is herded into the dome during Mardi Gras to be terminated . local anesthetic all know this to be totally unrealistic … even millions of homicidal bee would n’t have the mettle to spoil Carnival . Talk about a veridical buzzkill ! ( Sorry , it had to be done . ) You ’ll also determine more death and mayhem in the Dome in the 1978 TV movie classic creatively titledSuperdome , which of course found its way to the hallowed moving-picture show bank ofMystery Science Theater 3000 .

Jazzland/Six Flags

If you ’re looking for both tax incentives for your filmandthe perfect post - apocalyptic locating , appear no further than the decrepit , flighty , and * totally not haunted * abandoned ship amusement Mungo Park formerly known as Six Flags New Orleans and before that , as Jazzland . This station is clearly a go - to for photographers and filmmakers looking to get the entropy of urban decomposition , which was observe and used in a sort of movies ranging fromDawn of the Planet of the ApestoKiller Joe , Nic Cage’sStolen , and evenPercy Jackson : Sea of Monsters . The land site was also engage in the filmJurassic earth , although more for the open distance than the scenery … the movie maker on that one literally just built their own theme park in the Six Flags parking deal . True level .

The Marigny

This triangle - shaped wedge of street was at one degree – very much like its neighbour , the French Quarter – almost entirely residential , though these day , you ’re more probable to notice Airbnb rental than places where you could truly live . Of naturally , it ’s anchored by Frenchmen Street , notable for its excellent live - music venues , which many topical anaesthetic are now touch on to as " the Modern Bourbon " for the hordes of visitor it attracts . Still , it ’s both a endearing and distinctly New Orleans neighborhood , filled with colorful shotgun sign and even more colourful people , making it immediately filmic . Movies featured here track down the gamut , from Jim Jarmusch’sDown by Lawto Jon Favreau’sChef , which has the titular cook parking his nutrient hand truck on Frenchmen to sell Po River - boys .

Riverwalk

Wait … is n’t this just a shopping centre on the river across from the French Quarter ? Yes ! It is ! But it ’s also , astonishingly , a pop post for films set in NOLA . Legal - ground drama / thrillers seem to be drawn to this topographic point , for some reason , includingThe Pelican BriefandRunaway Jury . While John Grisham is originally a Mississippian , he ’s also clearly a fan of the Big Easy .

The Cemeteries

This city is world - renowned for its uniquely beautiful and ghost " city of the Dead , " centuries - old mausoleums and above - ground crypts in lieu of traditional " six metrical unit under " grave . Ours is one of few city in the humankind that run steady tour chemical group through cemeteries , so you could imagine that they might be attractive to someone with a camera . The Ashley Judd vehicleDouble Jeopardysports a scene in Lafayette Cemetery No . 1 , as does the classicThe Cincinnati Kid , but it ’s the cult classicEasy Riderthat really takes the bar here . That film has conductor / actor Dennis Hopper and cohort Peter Fonda famously embarking on a memorable ( and , legend has it , very real ) Mardi Gras Lucy in the sky with diamonds slip in St. Louis Cemetery No . 1 , home of the resting place of voodoo queen Marie Laveau .

The Saint James AME Church

While both21 Jump Streetand its creatively titled sequel,22 Jump Street , are n’t specifically determine in New Orleans , they certainly did a lot of filming in NOLA , as testify by the titulary localisation , which locals will recognize as a historical African Methodist Episcopal church … rather than an clandestine constabulary precinct particularise in copper posing as high school scholarly person . The movie maker behind21/22didn’t kibosh there , though , and take full reward of filming in New Orleans and its surroundings . In improver to the church building , bang-up local anesthetic might also recognize scenes filmed in Riverdale High School , Lafreniere Park , and the Esplanade Mall in Kenner ( brah ) .

Bourbon Street

Oh , Rue Bourbon . How we love and loathe you . In the minds of outsiders , both New Orleans AND the Gallic Quarter are located whole on Bourbon Street , which , as y’ all well know , is far from factual . But authenticity is n’t exactly Hollywood ’s primary end . You ’ll find crowd of drunken revelers , invariably clothed in feathered mask and fair beads , in movies likeNow You See MeandThe Pelican Brief , but also in classic likeTightropeandLive and Let Die , which also has that absolutely insane"alligator walk " stuntthat still result Louisianan bite their fingernails to this twenty-four hour period ( even though they used crocodiles and not our native gators ) .

The Crescent City Connection and the Algiers Ferry

Like the Superdome , both the bridgework that stretches across the Mississippi , and the notable ferry that hinge upon across it , are iconic prospect of the Downtown New Orleans visible horizon , and both invariably appear in the backdrops of films coif here . But sometimes they ’re used for more than just set binding : in the Denzel Washington thrillerDeja Vu , the bad guys BOMB THE FERRY . Of of course Jerry Bruckheimer produced this movie : who else would even think to blow up the freaking Algiers Ferry ? Still , both the CCC and the ferry are essentially characters in this film , and there ’s some eldritch sci - fi time - folding stuff thrown in , too . Plus , both Val Kilmer andJesusare in it . await , it ’s worth seeing , that ’s all we ’re saying here .

The French Quarter

Amongst all the old , iconic neighborhood of the Crescent City , the Vieux Carre is both the oldest and most iconic . As far as filmmakers go , there seems to be an unwritten rule that if you limit a movie in NOLA , you must boast its celebrated streets , musicians , pavement performers , hucksters , hotel , hanging garden , gas lanterns , balcony , and other detail that make this part of town both so adored and so now recognizable . Perhaps most excellently , Interview with the Vampireset multiple outside along 700 to 900 Royal St. But motion picture feature the Quarter go all the manner back toTarzan of the Apesin 1918 , and proceed to this day , from salutary film ( Elvis Presley’sKing Creole ) to decent flicks ( pointedness of No Return , Tightrope ) , and clunkers ( Now You See Me ) . For good or ill , when it come to Hollywood , the French Quarter basically is New Orleans . They ’re certainly not rushing to set their movies in Gentilly ( though we ’d sleep together to see that ) .

Tipitina’s

Dennis Quaid vehicleThe Big Easyis noted to most New Orleanians for being possibly the most tone - deaf depiction of the urban center ever put to shoot . Seriously , that idiom , Dennis … you ’re commonly great and we know your stuff , but you ’re never hold up this one down . Most memorably – and not in a good way – is a fit in which Quaid takes love interest group Ellen Barkin to the noted music baseball club Tipitina ’s … for dinner ? Um , it ’s not a restaurant , guys , specially not one with cheesy neon crawfish on the walls and a clearly fake " Cajun " chef who is obviously someone from literally anywhere but Cajun land . If you ’re from NOLA , watching this sceneis downright agonizing . Iconic , but torturous .

The Sazerac Bar

The famed bar , now situated in the Roosevelt hotel , bear the name of a quintessential New Orleans cocktail , and has been immortalized on several film reels . You ’ll find it inNow You See Me(seriously , what is it with this movie ? It ’s like some producer decided there was a NOLA localisation list that they had to obsessively agree off ) , but more memorably inJFK , in a scenery that features a dazzling performance by John Candy , in which he altogether and thoroughly scoop Kevin Costner ’s phony - twaddle accent with literal , you sleep with … act . ensure to check out the wall painting on the bulwark , for authenticity .

The streetcars

Like the Gallic Quarter , the unspoken film - cosmos mandate about New Orleans also lend oneself to our iconic streetcars , which truly are pretty resplendent . You ’ll bump few iconic scenes really taking blank space on the tram , but they ’re inevitably trundle along in the ground in NOLA - base films , presumably to give them that real , Big Easy opinion . One notable standout is , naturally , A tram Named Desire , which features both the titulary streetcar and plentifulness of Vieux Carre locating . But do n’t get too excited about taking Stanley and Stella ’s MTA route for yourself … there has n’t been a streetcar on the Desire business line for many decades , sadly .

City Park

While not as widely recognize as Audubon Park ( Uptown , across from both Tulane and Loyola Universities ) , City Park dwarfs Audubon in both size and number of film locations . Dozens of films have been shot in this historic and gorgeous public space , which is filled with lakes , lagoons , and ancient live oak Tree festooned with lichen and dripping with Spanish moss … a nd that ’s only since 2008 . you may finda comprehensive listhere , but some of the more placeable recent visual aspect of City Park on celluloid includeThe Expendables , The Mechanic , Red , GI Joe II(sure , when you think GI Joe , you think NOLA!),Old Boy , Beautiful Creatures , Get Hard , and that all - time cinematic masterpiece , Hot Tub Time Machine 2 .

The Upper Garden District

This neighborhood is so old , verdant , and beguiling that goth tabby Anne Rice move there , but not before setting many of her novels in the thug , beginning withInterview with the Vampire . The moving-picture show adaptation of that book of course show off some adorable UGD venue , like the old Coliseum Theater at 1233 Coliseum St , where Louis goes to see the movieTequila Sunrise , and of course there ’s a noteworthy scene take in Lafayette Cemetery No . 1 ( see above ) . Another literary adaptation , The Curious Case of Benjamin Button , also makes consumption of the Garden District ’s charms : ol' Ben ’s house was filmed at 2707 Coliseum St , a mansion dating back to 1832 , which is most likely why Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie decided to move to NOLA for a spell ( though not anymore … sovisitors require to quit asking where Brad and Angie populate , already ) .

Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World

Hard Targetis probably the " best worst " Jean Claude Van Damme picture show in existence . Between JCVD ’s epical grey mullet – how do you say " business in the front , company in the rear " in Belgian French ? – Wilford Brimley as a crazy - drunk Cajun with a prow & arrow , bait a horse , and the Crescent City mount , it ’s pretty glorious all around . That is , unless you realize that there are … mountains in the scope during certain exterior scenes ? remark to film persistence teams everywhere : South Louisiana is really , really , really flat . There is , however , one notably authentic NOLA fix in this MST3K - ready flick , other than the de rigueur French Quarter : Mardi Gras World , where many of the most notable Carnival floats in the city are both craft and stored . In this masterpiece , it ’s the site of the big confrontation between JCVD and villain Lance Henriksen . Explosions and face kicks galore !

The Audubon Aquarium of the Americas

Along with the zoo , NOLA is home to a beautiful and renownedaquarium , a social structure which immediately became part of the metropolis ’s architectural landscape when it open up in 1990 . On movie , you may retrieve it in movies that are n’t so good , likeFailure to Launch(snooze ) , as well as movies that are surprisingly good , such as Werner Herzog’sBad Lieutenant : Port of Call New Orleans . The latter might have a windy name , but at least it ’s not a tedious celluloid . We ’re treated not only to some coolheaded New Orleans locales – the Audubon Aquarium included – but also to some epic Nic Cage nuclear meltdown aspect . And that ’s enounce a lot , given the fact that nuclear meltdown prospect are Cage ’s strong suit .

Live and Let Die