Utah has stunning and diverse attractions, from national parks to temples. While known for its salt lakes and stunning snow, Utah is also home to several amazing films. But which are considered the best movies filmed in Utah? From fictional historical movies to classic films from the 90s, there are so many movies out there that capture the beauty of the state. So without further ado, here are some of the top examples of movies filmed in Utah.
6. National Treasure (2004)
National Treasure is an action-adventure heist film that is remembered fondly as one of the best movies starring Nicolas Cage. Cage plays the role of Benjamin Franklin Gates, a historian, and computer expert Riley Poole, and archivist Abigail Chase, who search for a massive lost Freemason treasure, which includes a map hidden on the back of the United States Declaration of Independence. During the scene when the crew is in the Arctic, filming was actually taken in Strawberry Reservoir in Utah during the winter.
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5. The Sandlot (1993)
The Sandlot is a classic movie and is also one of the best movies filmed in Utah. The 1993 coming-of-age sports comedy tells the story of a group of young baseball players during the summer of 1962. The group falls into adventures involving baseball, treehouse sleepovers, the snooty rival team, and lifeguards at the local pool. The movie was also filmed entirely in Utah. Many scenes were filmed in Ogden, Rose Park, Glendale, and American Fork. The ball diamond where the team played was on Glenrose Drive in Salt Lake City.
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4. Billy the Kid (1930)
With several scenes shot in Zion National Park and all over the surrounding area, Billy the Kid is one of the best movies filmed in Utah. The 1930 Western focuses on the relationship between frontier outlaw Billy the Kid and lawman Pat Garrett. The national park is the perfect backdrop for creating Wild Wild West scenes that appear throughout the movie.
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3. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007)
It’s strange to imagine fantasy films being shot inland, especially when the majority of the movie is from the seas. Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End is an epic fantasy swashbuckler film starring beloved Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, and Geoffery Rush. In this installment, Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann, Hector Barbossa, and the crew of the Black Pearl try and rescue Captain Jack Sparrow from Davy Jone’s locker and prepare to fight Lord Cutler Beckett, who controls the Flying Dutchman. The scene where the Black Pearl is beached was actually shot on the Bonneville Salt Flats.
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2. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
Another fantasy movie that seems impossible to be somewhere in the United States is Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The 1989 action-adventure movie starring Harrison Ford is the third installment to the series and follows as Indiana Jones searches for his father, a Holy Grail scholar, who has been kidnapped and held hostage by the Nazis while on a journey to find the Holy Grail. In the film, parts of Arches National Park and Moab, Utah were used.
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1. Forrest Gump (1994)
Finally, number one on the list of best movies filmed in Utah is Forrest Gump, a classic film that everyone must see at least once. Starring Tom Hanks, the movie follows a titular character from the 1950s to the 1970s from the perspective of an Alabama man with an IQ of 75, who yearns to be reunited with his childhood sweetheart. Considered to be one of the greatest movies of all time, the movie has too many great scenes to count, but one that is remembered is the running scene. At the point when Gump stopped running after 3 years, 2 months, 14 days, and 16 hours, he was in Monument Valley, Utah.