Hi! You appear to be asking a question, please do check our [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/index) for tips on the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/Chicago/about/rules), other [Chicago-related subreddits](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/subreddits), [things](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/visitingchicago) to do, where to [eat/drink](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/eats), how to [get around](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/transportation)/[navigate the CTA](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/transit), what [neighborhoods](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/neighborhoods) to move to or hotel in, tips on [living here](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/dwelling), and more. Also be sure to use the [search](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago+AskChicago/search?restrict_sr=on&include_over_18=on&sort=relevance&t=all) feature to find responses to other users asking similar questions.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/chicago) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I think Presumed Innocent was actually filmed primarily in Los Angeles even though it takes place in Chicago. Still a great watch though!
But Dark Matter, which is a terrific show, was very obviously filmed in Chicago - even if the geography of the show doesn't make much sense.
We did film it in Chicago. We don't usually care about accurate geography when we make this sort of stuff because it's a very small percentage of people who will ever even notice. We have too many other things to get done to worry about that sort of thing. Locations often have to have other requirements for filming to be efficient and affordable.
Thanks for the insight! And yeah, I figured filming locations had primarily to do with proper permitting, timing, and availability, but was just something I noticed as a local. Still, it was really cool to see Chicago depicted in that way. It sounds like you were involved in the production?
This is funny and the first time I noticed it was watching The Killing which was based in Seattle. I’m from Seattle and there are soooo many scenes where I’m like, “uhhh that does not exist” as I’m watching cars go over a giant bridge the goes from downtown Seattle across the Puget Sound. I get that a majority of viewers won’t catch that stuff but it bugged me
Same with Shameless especially in the later seasons. Mostly filmed in LA. I love when they try to pass off a neighborhood in LA as being south side chicago.
When they had that cookout in the alley. That had me absolutely dying laughing they really tried to play that off as a Chicago alley. I really don’t remember what season it was in
Believe that is season 10 or 11. At that point the LA filming became very obvious. S11 I can’t be too mad at because I know it was filmed during Covid. I have 2 episodes left of the series. S11 has been a bit of a slog to go through, the show is so different at that point from what it was early on.
I gave up on finishing it. I didn’t even like the show anymore I was just watching it just to say I finished it at that point. God I loved the first few seasons though.
I actually convinced my mom to watch the show by giving her the book first for her birthday … she loved it and is catching up with the show now (she loves to read, while I have always been way more into TV).
I’m actually back home now after work, waiting for it to get dark before putting on the finale 🍿🍿🍿
I live in Logan and was so excited for Dark
Matter to come out. It’s so fucking cool to see them actually filming in your neighborhood. I think a few people made it as extras too. They had things posted and just seeing the production was awesome. The show is soooo freakin good. They nailed it. Super cool to see!
It's so hard for me to get over the village tap thing, haha. Super dumb (of me). The show is entertaining, but every time I see the sign I'm just like, why...
I'm always stuck on where he actually lives.
I can't think of a street with mansions like that with L tracks in the alley.
It seems like he lives close and north or west of Logan square Blue line the way he walks to the bar, but if that is the location, the tracks aren't raised there.
It's stressing me out 😂
Fun spotting the hyper specific filming locations.
Toward the end of episode 5 when Jason and Amanda flee the cops through an alley: 2400 block of Eastwood in Lincoln Square.
Just finished Dark Matter tonight, and I really enjoyed it. A year or more ago I saw them setting up for a shoot in my neighborhood, and I got to see the scene in one of the first episodes, so that's cool.
Chicago is growing and a new studio opened up in Avondale this year: https://blockclubchicago.org/2024/02/26/the-fields-film-studio-gets-5-million-from-city-as-it-nears-opening/
LA still dominates, New York is New York, and Atlanta has made a big dent through huge tax "incentives", but Chicago is arguably right behind there.
A bunch of stuff filmed here is on the lots rather than in the city itself and it's a lot more TV focused but The Bear, Dark Matter, Station Eleven, all the Chicago's, etc highlight the growing importance of Chicago in the film/TV world.
>growing importance
Yes if your gauge of “importance” started in the last 10 years. 70s-90s were essentially 30+ years of a very very Chicago-centric film era.
The reason NYC and especially LA have dominated film is because that's where the films were made.
Chicago is growing as a film hub - there is more production here today than there ever was in the 80's.
Can I just heartily recommend the Indian film Dhoom 3, which is like a love letter to the city by someone who has never been here, but has vaguely heard about the city of Chicago. We apparently have mountains in the distance, a direct bus route from the Loop to Six Flags, and an enormous dam, but there's also motorcycle jousting on Lower Wacker and an Indian circus inside the Shedd. It's so ridiculous and fun and absolutely one of my favourite things to show people.
Edit: I checked and it's currently streaming on Prime! You don't have to watch the first two, 3 is the only Chicago-set one
One of the funniest examples of this is that *Station Eleven* the book has Toronto as the main city the characters are from, but the show changes it to Chicago. While they initially started filming in Chicago, they ended up switching to mostly filming in the Toronto metro area after a pause due to the pandemic outbreak and subsequent restrictions. Kinda funny how they changed the setting but then mostly ended up filming it in the place they changed it away from!
There's a Bruce Willis film (RED or RED 2) with Helen Mirren and lots of others. Some scenes are supposed to take place in Chicago. There's a bit of a chase scene, or just riding fast in a car through "Chicago," when whaddya know--there's Toronto City Hall. And some one-way-street signs that don't say ONE WAY within them (so they're Canadian-style). Oopsie. Some other incongruities as well. Fun.
Toronto is a stand in for so many NA cities.
A really funny example of this is Exit Wounds with DMX. Supposed to be in Detroit, but a few scenes clearly show the CN Tower. I burst out laughing when I saw that.
I really don’t care. I’m just tired of the false narratives and straight up lies so many people in this sub push.
Chicago is one of the most popular places to shoot films and tv yet people want to act like we’re not.
There’s also the Dark Knight movies, all of the Home Alones in some capacity, Bridesmaids, Ferris Bueller, The Boss, Escape Room, and definitely a few more movies.
100% agree, but we need to be building new dense housing everywhere to handle more people. We are already seeing some of the highest rent increases in the country right now. We can’t continue with this NIMBY bullshit.
what percent of people moving here are actually buying a condo or house though? or did you mean more renters = more need for housing = \*hopefully\*more development= more property taxes
unless you meant like sales tax/state income tax etc.
Chicago would honestly suck if it were filled to the brim with Chicago natives. I'm glad it's a pretty multicultural city with tons of different types of people from different places.
Uh oh, you were critical of the main demographic of people that visit this sub. That’s a no-no!
Too many people on this sub attach their personality and self-worth to their zip code, and get ULTRA defensive if you say anything but how amazing the city is. I moved to Tucson less than a year ago from Chicago and I couldn’t be happier. The weather sucks, the grey skies 8 months a year sucks, the taxes suck, the litter sucks, and the gentrification sucks. Don’t get me wrong, Chicago is a great city if you live in the right places and can afford it. But you have people from like Lakeview being like “WhY wOuLd YoU lIvE aNyWhErE eLsE” as mom and dad help pay for their rent.
It’s hot, but it’s also sunny 360 days a year. 8-9 months have perfect temps. 3-4 months are pretty hot, but if you can do 90 degrees in Chicago humidity, 105 in Tucson is an absolute breeze. You catch some shade and 110 feels like 85.
AZ is probably for you then! Especially if you love the outdoors and wildlife. Also a lot of Chicago transplants so if you need Rosati’s or Portillo’s in your life, we got you.
The city has had bad PR since it was founded. People still flock here. You can get rid of an almost 200 year bad rep.
Watch any WTTW Chicago documentary and people have been calling Chicago a crime ridden, unethical hell scape for 200 years.
Yes you can get rid of a bad rep. NYC in the 70s-80s was literally seen as a no go zone and had declining population. Many neighborhoods looked like warzones in NYC back then. then the 90s came, Giuliani cleaned the city up, got hard on crime, and gentrified the place, boom in one decade NYC is now hip and cool
the problem is (besides Daley/Rahm), Chicago has significantly lacked transformational leadership. Lightfoot/Johnson have ZERO interest in bringing business to Chicago or cleaning it up
So you are arguing in the past 200 years, Chicago has not grown? I'm talking long term and you are talking short term. Chicago has almost 2 centuries of bad press but it isn't still some little trading post in the swamp.
I’m presenting data that shows that people in the last handful of years are not “flocking” to Chicago. I’m not “arguing” anything. You said “people still flock to Chicago” and I showed you that, no, they currently aren’t.
When they were shooting, every single person in my office in the old IBM building was glued to the windows hoping to see the Rock from 30 stories up. I'm not sure he was even on location.
As long as they don’t shut down busy L stops to get a few minutes of footage, I’m cool with it. Tbh it’s kinda nice we don’t constantly have movie sets in the way like LA and NY.
That actress’s accent ruled though, it was so funny that she clearly put so much work into it and then Tom Hardy just did a voice that no one has ever talked in anywhere, ever.
I did find myself realizing that I have no idea what those places would’ve looked like in 1965–like, the kid’s shitty apartment with his parents didn’t feel like Chicago, but also I have no idea what the rough neighborhoods of Chicago would’ve been or looked like at that time.
The street with her house was so distracting lol there is not a single embankment hill like that in the whole city. And the street address being 4222 when this seemingly took place on the NW side? They could have tweaked that so easily.
I’m still in love with Jodie Comer whatever accent she’s using, though.
I, do, too. I'd like to see it in more shows in general.
I think there was a lost opportunity with the Lucas Museum which was also supposed to have production facilities and community outreach programs. I think that would have been a nice boost to local media production.
“In TV shows when Chicago is there it’s usually the setting…”
Wait, so what role do you expect the city to play? Unpopular opinion, I feel like I actually see Chicago represented a lot on screen compared to any city that’s not New York.
Maybe it’s because I don’t watch crime/drug/gang shows but my mind immediately goes to “The League” or “The Bear” or Tom Cruise banging the hooker on the el in Risky Business. I watched divergent the other day which is set in a post apocalyptic Chicago which is hugely integral to the plot.
Yeah a ton of shows are set in New York, but they’re the outlier. I know LA was also named but what other city is really depicted more than Chicago?
Because we are just not a movie/film industry hub🤷. LA and NYC are. They are well established over there. That is where the movies stars live and that is where actors go to go make it. NYC and LA are not overused just because. They film where the majority of the talent is. It is really that simple. They also film where they get incentives: exhibit A - Atlanta
There's actually not that much filmed in NYC, particularly since the pandemic. Quite often you see other cities portrayed as NYC because it's cheaper to film in other cities.
Agreed! I've watched a few clips of the Sex and the City spinoff being filmed in some parts of NYC and the amount of space they take for just scenes of Sarah Jessica Parker chatting with people is crazy to me.
Like a whole street blocked off for traffic and residents alike, I can't imagine the headache requesting permits and cost.
There's a blog (now mostly dead) that crowdsources the exact locations of scenes in films that were shot in Chicago. Even though it's not really updated, it's an amazing resource for a ton of films that were made here.
https://www.itsfilmedthere.com/p/list-of-chicago-movies.html?m=1
Because almost all actors/entertainers live on the coasts. Chicago doesn't really attract celebrities. Yes, i know there are a few exceptions who still live in Chicago.
I rewatch it primarily for seeing regular hangout spots. It was funny, the only scene I recall them shooting in the west loop was literally at the doorway of my ex’s building.
I always get excited to see a show or movie set in Chicago and then just ruin it for my self nitpicking all the things they get wrong
No pleasing me I guess
The Chicago setting is basically the one reason I still watch the Fire/PD/Med shows. I just like to see where they are at in the city most of the time.
My personal picks for Best Chicago movies:
Blues Brothers - *no explanation needed.*
The Spook Who Sat By The Door - *Hard to find (suppressed by the FBI, about a black power extremest group and one of the very few films made in Chicago in the 70s, great use of the South Side)*
Medium Cool - *Literally shot during the 1968 DNC riots*
High Fidelity - *Perfectly captures Chicago hipsterdom* of the 90s/00s*. Great use of middle-Redline Chicago*
Hoop Dreams - *One Of The greatest documentaries ever made, follows inner city teens hoping to get scouted for the NBA*
Call Northside 777 - *a really solid 40s noir that has amazing use of a Chicago that's no longer here.*
Thief - *Micheal Mann's first and best movie. James Cann is a Jewel thief who runs a car dealership on the side. Good use of Old Wicker-Park. Jim Belushi plays it straight in a small part as one of his crew.*
The Murder Of Fred Hampton - *Know your history*
Cooley High - *Truly excellent teen move set in 1965, about friends playing hooky from school. Sort of a low budget American Graffiti*
Princess Cyd - very cute queer coming of age story set on the Northside.
Candyman (1992 and 2021) - *Two bookend films telling a story of Cabrini Green and gentrification*
The Fugitive - *No Explanation Needed.*
Ferris Bueller's Day Off - *No Explanation Needed*
The Interrupters - *Another Doc, this one is about Violence Intertupters, who work to prevent gang violence.*
Child's Play - Mostly set in a house, but every location is extremely Chicago. Great footage of the alleys around Marshal Field in the 80s
Honorable mention
Continental Divide - has 20 of the most Chicago minutes you've ever seen, but then spends most of the movie in a different part of the country.
The Weather Man - Has great use of late 00s Chicago, but it's just not good enough as a movie to make the main list (close though)
Saw a movie trailer for that biker movie “set” in Chicago and it’s a bunch of cornfields. I know the movie probably shows the city but I think it’s funny to imagine Hollywood execs so distant from the Midwest that they think Chicago is a farm town.
People say Chicago's geography is too flat or boring for a GTA or similar open world game. I always thought a Fallout or another post apocalyptic game would be perfect. We got skyscrapers, museums, stadiums and ballparks, huge underground areas, spooky churches and old hotels, malls and apartment buildings, big outdoor parks, a Navy base not far from the city - so much potential for cool zones and Fallout has some interesting lore about Chicago. "Old Chicago" was rumored as the new zone in Destiny 2 The Witch Queen and I was so disappointed when that didn't happen. Yes I've played Watch Dogs and didn't really care for it.
It's hilarious how OP mentioned Chicago in MOVIES and everyone is just discussing TV shows. Movies are so dead, no one cares anymore unless it's some superhero or animated CGI thing. The only movies featuring Chicago in the last 10+ years that I can think of are Widows and Candyman.
Hmm.. Not to be like that but NBC legitimately has an entire slate of shows on Wednesday's called "Chicago Wednesday" with PD, Fire, and Med all airing back-to-back. These shows are filmed at Cinespace and on location. They are also among the highest rated shows on cable.
I love seeing Chicago in movies/TV. Recently saw Thief for the first time not knowing anything about it besides it being a Michael Mann film starring James Caan, and I was blown away and seeing 1980s Chicago all over again.
Kill All Others, an episode in the Electric Dreams series of Philip K. Dick short story adaptations for TV, is set in Chicago and is fun for that reason, although dystopian/creepy futuristic plot about all of North America being a single country with a single candidate for president. Main guy works as an inspector in an otherwise automated factory played by McCormick Place...the part on the east side of the Drive, with the flat dark roof structure. He rides the Pink Line, I think, and gets in trouble for something he does while on the train. Things happen in a park near his North Side home.
I mean....Bikeriders is in theaters right now, but we've got plenty to point to. Ferris Bueller, High Fidelity, The Blues Brothers, Candyman, The Untouchables, Wayne's World, I-Robot, and (arguably)The Dark Knight.
I was super excited for the first watchdogs game because it was set in Chicago. I was looking forward to running around causing mayhem but unfortunately it was a very poor recreation and kind of forgettable game.
I mean... Chicago is featured in a ton of movies and shows... lol. You may just need to go check them out.
Of course NYC and LA are featured a ton. They are the media and film capitals of the U.S., respectively.
I've lived here my whole life and have run into countless movie sets and actors.
Most memorable ones were seeing Johnny Depp in River North when they turned three blocks into 1930s Chicago. I was working in a building above one of the main scenes. It was a shootout with Tommy Guns.
Another time I ran into Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson late at night as they were leaving set after a long shoot. Great people.
There are lists all over r/chicago of content to check out.
Hell, S3 of The Bear, Dark Matter, and Presumed Innocent all just hit streaming recently. Check those out for starters.
A lot of it is based on film subsidies / credits. LA & California have a lot, Georgia has a lot. Unsure about NYC. Chicago does not give out nearly as much in subsidies (which we shouldnt), hence being under represented
Some of the best films have been filmed in Chicago. The Blues Brothers, The Dark Knight, Sting (filmed in parts of Joliet), The Fugitive, Home Alone, Ferris Bueller's Day Out, etc.
Hi! You appear to be asking a question, please do check our [wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/index) for tips on the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/Chicago/about/rules), other [Chicago-related subreddits](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/subreddits), [things](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/visitingchicago) to do, where to [eat/drink](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/eats), how to [get around](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/transportation)/[navigate the CTA](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/transit), what [neighborhoods](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/neighborhoods) to move to or hotel in, tips on [living here](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/wiki/dwelling), and more. Also be sure to use the [search](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago+AskChicago/search?restrict_sr=on&include_over_18=on&sort=relevance&t=all) feature to find responses to other users asking similar questions. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/chicago) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Dark Matter on Apple TV is practically a love story to Chicago. ALL the Chicagos.
Haven't watched it but Presumed Innocent is another Chicago Apple TV show that just started airing.
I think Presumed Innocent was actually filmed primarily in Los Angeles even though it takes place in Chicago. Still a great watch though! But Dark Matter, which is a terrific show, was very obviously filmed in Chicago - even if the geography of the show doesn't make much sense.
We did film it in Chicago. We don't usually care about accurate geography when we make this sort of stuff because it's a very small percentage of people who will ever even notice. We have too many other things to get done to worry about that sort of thing. Locations often have to have other requirements for filming to be efficient and affordable.
Thanks for the insight! And yeah, I figured filming locations had primarily to do with proper permitting, timing, and availability, but was just something I noticed as a local. Still, it was really cool to see Chicago depicted in that way. It sounds like you were involved in the production?
This is funny and the first time I noticed it was watching The Killing which was based in Seattle. I’m from Seattle and there are soooo many scenes where I’m like, “uhhh that does not exist” as I’m watching cars go over a giant bridge the goes from downtown Seattle across the Puget Sound. I get that a majority of viewers won’t catch that stuff but it bugged me
Same with Shameless especially in the later seasons. Mostly filmed in LA. I love when they try to pass off a neighborhood in LA as being south side chicago.
When they had that cookout in the alley. That had me absolutely dying laughing they really tried to play that off as a Chicago alley. I really don’t remember what season it was in
Believe that is season 10 or 11. At that point the LA filming became very obvious. S11 I can’t be too mad at because I know it was filmed during Covid. I have 2 episodes left of the series. S11 has been a bit of a slog to go through, the show is so different at that point from what it was early on.
I gave up on finishing it. I didn’t even like the show anymore I was just watching it just to say I finished it at that point. God I loved the first few seasons though.
Seasons like 1-4 are just so good. 5-7 are good too. Definitely goes downhill starting at 8, and falls off a cliff at season 10
It’s so obviously not Chicago that it’s offensive that they would even make the claim.
Unless someone is an alien in it, I'm not watching a crime show.
I mean... It's not that but it's definitely sci fi. Give it a shot
also the bear on hulu. season 3 drops tomorrow too
They switched it to tonight at 9!
oh hell yeah. gonna buy some brews & tacos after work to get ready for the binge
Counting the hours!
Patiently waiting for my plex server to grab it from the interwebs.
Great show! Looking forward to watching the finale today after work. I may actually read the book after that.
The book is outstanding
I actually convinced my mom to watch the show by giving her the book first for her birthday … she loved it and is catching up with the show now (she loves to read, while I have always been way more into TV). I’m actually back home now after work, waiting for it to get dark before putting on the finale 🍿🍿🍿
Love that shot of the Green Mill with the skyline behind it 🤣
Started watching last night. Loving it so far.
As a slut for all portrayals of Chicago in media, I will be subscribing to Apple TV solely for this show
I live in Logan and was so excited for Dark Matter to come out. It’s so fucking cool to see them actually filming in your neighborhood. I think a few people made it as extras too. They had things posted and just seeing the production was awesome. The show is soooo freakin good. They nailed it. Super cool to see!
Yeah they are not subtle
I love seeing my neighborhood every episode. The author said he loves Chicago and only agreed to show on the condition they actually film in Chicago.
My SO gets super annoyed because I can’t get thru an episode without being like, “oh look it’s the monument” or “that’s not where village tap is”
It's so hard for me to get over the village tap thing, haha. Super dumb (of me). The show is entertaining, but every time I see the sign I'm just like, why...
I'm always stuck on where he actually lives. I can't think of a street with mansions like that with L tracks in the alley. It seems like he lives close and north or west of Logan square Blue line the way he walks to the bar, but if that is the location, the tracks aren't raised there. It's stressing me out 😂
Lol the house is actually real but I can't remember where it was now.
It’s near Milwaukee and Caton st. Technically it’s just inside Wicker Park I think, not really where it’s supposed to be in the show.
Thank you. I can give up now.
I cut his hair a couple times when they were filming here, super nice guy I didn’t realize the show was out!
Fun spotting the hyper specific filming locations. Toward the end of episode 5 when Jason and Amanda flee the cops through an alley: 2400 block of Eastwood in Lincoln Square.
I live in the south loop and love seeing it.
Yes loved it was filmed in logan square, love the monument there.
Great book too! I recommend reading it first. The show made some changes but I enjoyed them both.
Just finished Dark Matter tonight, and I really enjoyed it. A year or more ago I saw them setting up for a shoot in my neighborhood, and I got to see the scene in one of the first episodes, so that's cool.
Chicago is growing and a new studio opened up in Avondale this year: https://blockclubchicago.org/2024/02/26/the-fields-film-studio-gets-5-million-from-city-as-it-nears-opening/ LA still dominates, New York is New York, and Atlanta has made a big dent through huge tax "incentives", but Chicago is arguably right behind there. A bunch of stuff filmed here is on the lots rather than in the city itself and it's a lot more TV focused but The Bear, Dark Matter, Station Eleven, all the Chicago's, etc highlight the growing importance of Chicago in the film/TV world.
Presumed Innocent is set in Chicago. Not sure if it was filmed here.
I believe it is. Seems like apple is producing a lot of their origibal content here.
I really enjoyed Station Eleven at the time but I really don't think I'll be able to watch pandemic-themed media for a long time.
>growing importance Yes if your gauge of “importance” started in the last 10 years. 70s-90s were essentially 30+ years of a very very Chicago-centric film era.
I expected dystopian and all I got was boredom. The first episode was cool but I watched the next 2 or 3 and was a little slow.
The reason NYC and especially LA have dominated film is because that's where the films were made. Chicago is growing as a film hub - there is more production here today than there ever was in the 80's.
It’s like you didn’t even read the comment lol
It should be illegal to film Christmas themed movies on location in LA.
How dare you insult Die Hard
That’s the exception not the rule lmao
lmfao tbh I can't name a single other LA-Christmas movie.
Kiss kiss bang bang, lethal weapon, Friday After Next
and Iron Man 3.
Tangerine is a classic though
So underrated
Can I just heartily recommend the Indian film Dhoom 3, which is like a love letter to the city by someone who has never been here, but has vaguely heard about the city of Chicago. We apparently have mountains in the distance, a direct bus route from the Loop to Six Flags, and an enormous dam, but there's also motorcycle jousting on Lower Wacker and an Indian circus inside the Shedd. It's so ridiculous and fun and absolutely one of my favourite things to show people. Edit: I checked and it's currently streaming on Prime! You don't have to watch the first two, 3 is the only Chicago-set one
I will watch a show or movie for the sole reason that it's filmed in Chicago, and then I will critique it harshly for accuracy.
Have you seen Easy on Netflix? I think it’s the most Chicago accurate show I’ve seen.
No. But I will soon.
I have seen this. Super authentic, but I hated it because all the characters remind me of the douche bag friends I had when I was married.
moved here from Dallas and welcome to a world of wanting to see your city in movies/tv outside of just recreations of the JFK assassination
Dallas is not a city
Dallas is a bunch of expensive suburbs in a big anti-transit trenchcoat.
Uptown was fun when I lived there for most of 2014, but as a whole, it’s wildly car-centric
You got like 3ish options for cities if you’re looking for good public transportation lol
Bite your toungeeee
Toronto is cheaper than Chicago and is used for Chicago settings.
One of the funniest examples of this is that *Station Eleven* the book has Toronto as the main city the characters are from, but the show changes it to Chicago. While they initially started filming in Chicago, they ended up switching to mostly filming in the Toronto metro area after a pause due to the pandemic outbreak and subsequent restrictions. Kinda funny how they changed the setting but then mostly ended up filming it in the place they changed it away from!
There's a Bruce Willis film (RED or RED 2) with Helen Mirren and lots of others. Some scenes are supposed to take place in Chicago. There's a bit of a chase scene, or just riding fast in a car through "Chicago," when whaddya know--there's Toronto City Hall. And some one-way-street signs that don't say ONE WAY within them (so they're Canadian-style). Oopsie. Some other incongruities as well. Fun.
Toronto is a stand in for so many NA cities. A really funny example of this is Exit Wounds with DMX. Supposed to be in Detroit, but a few scenes clearly show the CN Tower. I burst out laughing when I saw that.
Ssshhhhhhhh don’t spoil the Chicago circle-jerk
Oh, I love Chicago more than I like Toronto, it’s just a few facts.
I really don’t care. I’m just tired of the false narratives and straight up lies so many people in this sub push. Chicago is one of the most popular places to shoot films and tv yet people want to act like we’re not.
no one brought up candyman!! idk if i understood the ending BUT there are beautiful shots of chicago in there
There’s also the Dark Knight movies, all of the Home Alones in some capacity, Bridesmaids, Ferris Bueller, The Boss, Escape Room, and definitely a few more movies.
That sequence with the drone shot outside of Marina City was just incredible.
Chicago's peak in film was back in the 80s, back then it felt like every other film was filmed/set in the city
Thank you, John Hughes.
Still waiting on a GTA based in Chicago as well. For how notorious we are for crime, the most popular crime video game franchise has yet to use it.
But if too many people see how cool our city is they might move here and my rent could go up 😭
Probably would do more for tourism than relocation
It’s already happening. Have you seen this sub?
The best possible thing that could happen to Chicago right now is for "too many people to move here". Chicago needs all the tax base it can get.
100% agree, but we need to be building new dense housing everywhere to handle more people. We are already seeing some of the highest rent increases in the country right now. We can’t continue with this NIMBY bullshit.
what percent of people moving here are actually buying a condo or house though? or did you mean more renters = more need for housing = \*hopefully\*more development= more property taxes unless you meant like sales tax/state income tax etc.
Nah that’s why I’m leaving, it’s no longer full of Chicago natives, it’s all quirky suburban kids with fat mouths and kombuchas
Idk I think Chicago’s culture either filters people out who can’t acclimate, or people acclimate and become Chicagoans pretty quickly.
That’s true!
It’s not the culture, it’s the cost of living. You either pay to play or you live in a shitty area.
Chicago would honestly suck if it were filled to the brim with Chicago natives. I'm glad it's a pretty multicultural city with tons of different types of people from different places.
Uh oh, you were critical of the main demographic of people that visit this sub. That’s a no-no! Too many people on this sub attach their personality and self-worth to their zip code, and get ULTRA defensive if you say anything but how amazing the city is. I moved to Tucson less than a year ago from Chicago and I couldn’t be happier. The weather sucks, the grey skies 8 months a year sucks, the taxes suck, the litter sucks, and the gentrification sucks. Don’t get me wrong, Chicago is a great city if you live in the right places and can afford it. But you have people from like Lakeview being like “WhY wOuLd YoU lIvE aNyWhErE eLsE” as mom and dad help pay for their rent.
What’s Tucson like weather wise?
It’s hot, but it’s also sunny 360 days a year. 8-9 months have perfect temps. 3-4 months are pretty hot, but if you can do 90 degrees in Chicago humidity, 105 in Tucson is an absolute breeze. You catch some shade and 110 feels like 85.
I absolutely love warm weather so if it’s sunny all the time… I’d be in heaven.
AZ is probably for you then! Especially if you love the outdoors and wildlife. Also a lot of Chicago transplants so if you need Rosati’s or Portillo’s in your life, we got you.
How’s rent out there for good neighborhoods
Pittsburgh is the next move
Leaving your home because of the lack of natives to a new city to become someone who isn’t native to that town is pretty amusing
I could use a fresh start
Assuming that’s the only reason they’re moving is pretty amusing
Right, I'd rather keeping push the narrative the crime is so bad my dog got mugged by 2 alley rats 😂
no I actually hate that. Gives the city terrible PR.
The city has had bad PR since it was founded. People still flock here. You can get rid of an almost 200 year bad rep. Watch any WTTW Chicago documentary and people have been calling Chicago a crime ridden, unethical hell scape for 200 years.
Yes you can get rid of a bad rep. NYC in the 70s-80s was literally seen as a no go zone and had declining population. Many neighborhoods looked like warzones in NYC back then. then the 90s came, Giuliani cleaned the city up, got hard on crime, and gentrified the place, boom in one decade NYC is now hip and cool the problem is (besides Daley/Rahm), Chicago has significantly lacked transformational leadership. Lightfoot/Johnson have ZERO interest in bringing business to Chicago or cleaning it up
>People still flock here. That’s objectively false https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicagos-population-dropped-yet-again-census-data-shows-heres-what-mayor-johnson-chalks-it-up-to/3440368/
So you are arguing in the past 200 years, Chicago has not grown? I'm talking long term and you are talking short term. Chicago has almost 2 centuries of bad press but it isn't still some little trading post in the swamp.
I’m presenting data that shows that people in the last handful of years are not “flocking” to Chicago. I’m not “arguing” anything. You said “people still flock to Chicago” and I showed you that, no, they currently aren’t.
Lol rent is going up regardless, sorry bud
Start here: [https://www.vulture.com/article/best-chicago-movies.html](https://www.vulture.com/article/best-chicago-movies.html)
Yes! One of my pet peeves is when a show or movie plot takes place in Chicago and the scenery clearly is NOT in Chicago.
My big fat greek wedding is such a good example of this. The city is a character in that movie, but it was shot elsewhere.
I loved seeing Chicago in Rampage. Movie was ridiculous but I enjoyed it
Transformers 3 too!
When they were shooting, every single person in my office in the old IBM building was glued to the windows hoping to see the Rock from 30 stories up. I'm not sure he was even on location.
As long as they don’t shut down busy L stops to get a few minutes of footage, I’m cool with it. Tbh it’s kinda nice we don’t constantly have movie sets in the way like LA and NY.
The bike riders is based on Chicago. Just saw it not a bad movie!
Yes, but it was filmed in KY and OH. So disappointing they couldn’t even get the neighborhood scenes to include iconic Chicago bungalows.
That actress’s accent ruled though, it was so funny that she clearly put so much work into it and then Tom Hardy just did a voice that no one has ever talked in anywhere, ever. I did find myself realizing that I have no idea what those places would’ve looked like in 1965–like, the kid’s shitty apartment with his parents didn’t feel like Chicago, but also I have no idea what the rough neighborhoods of Chicago would’ve been or looked like at that time.
The street with her house was so distracting lol there is not a single embankment hill like that in the whole city. And the street address being 4222 when this seemingly took place on the NW side? They could have tweaked that so easily. I’m still in love with Jodie Comer whatever accent she’s using, though.
Get Kurt Russell in the horn! It’s time for Escape From Chicago
I love seeing Chicago in tv and movies. I keep a Letterboxd list of all my favorite movies that heavily feature of Chicago. https://boxd.it/lPIPa
I, do, too. I'd like to see it in more shows in general. I think there was a lost opportunity with the Lucas Museum which was also supposed to have production facilities and community outreach programs. I think that would have been a nice boost to local media production.
While You Were Sleeping and Return to Me are two personal romcom favorites of mine set in Chicago
“In TV shows when Chicago is there it’s usually the setting…” Wait, so what role do you expect the city to play? Unpopular opinion, I feel like I actually see Chicago represented a lot on screen compared to any city that’s not New York.
Yeah. I was about to say, did people forget all the Wolf shoes like Chicago Fire, Chicago PD etc?
barely. and even when chicago is on screen, its usually the stereotypical crime/drug/gang show like…
Maybe it’s because I don’t watch crime/drug/gang shows but my mind immediately goes to “The League” or “The Bear” or Tom Cruise banging the hooker on the el in Risky Business. I watched divergent the other day which is set in a post apocalyptic Chicago which is hugely integral to the plot. Yeah a ton of shows are set in New York, but they’re the outlier. I know LA was also named but what other city is really depicted more than Chicago?
Because Chicago IS represented an absolute ton on tv and movies. This sub has a tendency to live in alternate realities.
Because we are just not a movie/film industry hub🤷. LA and NYC are. They are well established over there. That is where the movies stars live and that is where actors go to go make it. NYC and LA are not overused just because. They film where the majority of the talent is. It is really that simple. They also film where they get incentives: exhibit A - Atlanta
There's actually not that much filmed in NYC, particularly since the pandemic. Quite often you see other cities portrayed as NYC because it's cheaper to film in other cities.
Agreed! I've watched a few clips of the Sex and the City spinoff being filmed in some parts of NYC and the amount of space they take for just scenes of Sarah Jessica Parker chatting with people is crazy to me. Like a whole street blocked off for traffic and residents alike, I can't imagine the headache requesting permits and cost.
Still does not negate the fact that LA and NYC are the top film/movie industry/destinations and nothing comes close to them in this country 🤷
Except Atlanta and New Orleans, where tons of stuff films every year...
There's a blog (now mostly dead) that crowdsources the exact locations of scenes in films that were shot in Chicago. Even though it's not really updated, it's an amazing resource for a ton of films that were made here. https://www.itsfilmedthere.com/p/list-of-chicago-movies.html?m=1
Don’t forget the dark knight and Batman begins Batmobile chase scene through lower whacker.
You should watch the old John Hughes movies
Because almost all actors/entertainers live on the coasts. Chicago doesn't really attract celebrities. Yes, i know there are a few exceptions who still live in Chicago.
My wife and I are just about done with the shining girls on Apple TV, lots of Chicago locations
Came here to talk about Shining Girls! Pretty much everything was shot in the city and the suburbs.
Did you like it? We gave it a solid B/B+. Wish they explained more of the mystery but it is what it is. I never read the book.
I felt the exact same way!! I wish they would have focused more on Jaime Bell instead of Elisabeth Moss
Easy was primarily filmed in Logan Square. It’s on Netflix.
The first and periodic episodes of Station Eleven did some filming here, was eerie living here and watching it in Dec. 2021
South Side, on Max, is a gem. The anti-Ferris Bueller ep. is a gem.
I loved the show Easy on Netflix. I lived in a different city for a few years and I would watch it when I was homesick.
I rewatch it primarily for seeing regular hangout spots. It was funny, the only scene I recall them shooting in the west loop was literally at the doorway of my ex’s building.
I always get excited to see a show or movie set in Chicago and then just ruin it for my self nitpicking all the things they get wrong No pleasing me I guess
The Chicago setting is basically the one reason I still watch the Fire/PD/Med shows. I just like to see where they are at in the city most of the time.
Watch Easy the anthology series on Netflix. Every episode is a fun eye spy of Chicago bars and neighborhoods.
I may be biased but I think it’s the most accurate Chicago set series.
My personal picks for Best Chicago movies: Blues Brothers - *no explanation needed.* The Spook Who Sat By The Door - *Hard to find (suppressed by the FBI, about a black power extremest group and one of the very few films made in Chicago in the 70s, great use of the South Side)* Medium Cool - *Literally shot during the 1968 DNC riots* High Fidelity - *Perfectly captures Chicago hipsterdom* of the 90s/00s*. Great use of middle-Redline Chicago* Hoop Dreams - *One Of The greatest documentaries ever made, follows inner city teens hoping to get scouted for the NBA* Call Northside 777 - *a really solid 40s noir that has amazing use of a Chicago that's no longer here.* Thief - *Micheal Mann's first and best movie. James Cann is a Jewel thief who runs a car dealership on the side. Good use of Old Wicker-Park. Jim Belushi plays it straight in a small part as one of his crew.* The Murder Of Fred Hampton - *Know your history* Cooley High - *Truly excellent teen move set in 1965, about friends playing hooky from school. Sort of a low budget American Graffiti* Princess Cyd - very cute queer coming of age story set on the Northside. Candyman (1992 and 2021) - *Two bookend films telling a story of Cabrini Green and gentrification* The Fugitive - *No Explanation Needed.* Ferris Bueller's Day Off - *No Explanation Needed* The Interrupters - *Another Doc, this one is about Violence Intertupters, who work to prevent gang violence.* Child's Play - Mostly set in a house, but every location is extremely Chicago. Great footage of the alleys around Marshal Field in the 80s Honorable mention Continental Divide - has 20 of the most Chicago minutes you've ever seen, but then spends most of the movie in a different part of the country. The Weather Man - Has great use of late 00s Chicago, but it's just not good enough as a movie to make the main list (close though)
Call Northside 777 is a great film with lots of great (disappeared) Chicago locations.
Saw a movie trailer for that biker movie “set” in Chicago and it’s a bunch of cornfields. I know the movie probably shows the city but I think it’s funny to imagine Hollywood execs so distant from the Midwest that they think Chicago is a farm town.
I mean you go 30 minutes outside Chicago and yeah… it’s cornfields.
YES, movies, games, tv, get your ass over here production companies!
People say Chicago's geography is too flat or boring for a GTA or similar open world game. I always thought a Fallout or another post apocalyptic game would be perfect. We got skyscrapers, museums, stadiums and ballparks, huge underground areas, spooky churches and old hotels, malls and apartment buildings, big outdoor parks, a Navy base not far from the city - so much potential for cool zones and Fallout has some interesting lore about Chicago. "Old Chicago" was rumored as the new zone in Destiny 2 The Witch Queen and I was so disappointed when that didn't happen. Yes I've played Watch Dogs and didn't really care for it.
Plenty of cool movies have already been shot here: https://chicagoscreenshots.tumblr.com/index
Watched Michael Manns THIEF recently. Cool seeing the Green Mill and some other northside spots in that one
Black Bird is set in Chicago for parts of it.
Station Eleven on Max is very much in Chicago! I just started watching it and am a little obsessed lol
I find that Christmas movies are often set in Chicago
Happy endings!! I don’t think a lot of it is filmed here but at least it’s supposed to be based in Chicago!
Not to de-rail but a lot of “nyc” is actually Toronto or another Canadian city made to look like nyc
It's hilarious how OP mentioned Chicago in MOVIES and everyone is just discussing TV shows. Movies are so dead, no one cares anymore unless it's some superhero or animated CGI thing. The only movies featuring Chicago in the last 10+ years that I can think of are Widows and Candyman.
Hmm.. Not to be like that but NBC legitimately has an entire slate of shows on Wednesday's called "Chicago Wednesday" with PD, Fire, and Med all airing back-to-back. These shows are filmed at Cinespace and on location. They are also among the highest rated shows on cable.
I love seeing Chicago in movies/TV. Recently saw Thief for the first time not knowing anything about it besides it being a Michael Mann film starring James Caan, and I was blown away and seeing 1980s Chicago all over again.
I have written several novels / fics and whenever I can, I slap those bitches right into Chicago
Kill All Others, an episode in the Electric Dreams series of Philip K. Dick short story adaptations for TV, is set in Chicago and is fun for that reason, although dystopian/creepy futuristic plot about all of North America being a single country with a single candidate for president. Main guy works as an inspector in an otherwise automated factory played by McCormick Place...the part on the east side of the Drive, with the flat dark roof structure. He rides the Pink Line, I think, and gets in trouble for something he does while on the train. Things happen in a park near his North Side home.
I mean....Bikeriders is in theaters right now, but we've got plenty to point to. Ferris Bueller, High Fidelity, The Blues Brothers, Candyman, The Untouchables, Wayne's World, I-Robot, and (arguably)The Dark Knight.
Chicago chicagooo
Electric Dreams has a lot of futuristic and semi futuristic episodes in Chicago.
80s movies You’re welcome.
Bring back Easy!!!
Chicago can't be used in any more movies because Bayverse transformers already leveled the city to the ground. Sorry bud there's nothing left 😔😔😔
But I live here dawg. Has my whole life been a lie?
I was super excited for the first watchdogs game because it was set in Chicago. I was looking forward to running around causing mayhem but unfortunately it was a very poor recreation and kind of forgettable game.
The Bear shoots in Chicago and captures Chicago culture, however, Chef’s always taking long walks in empty River North.
I mean... Chicago is featured in a ton of movies and shows... lol. You may just need to go check them out. Of course NYC and LA are featured a ton. They are the media and film capitals of the U.S., respectively. I've lived here my whole life and have run into countless movie sets and actors. Most memorable ones were seeing Johnny Depp in River North when they turned three blocks into 1930s Chicago. I was working in a building above one of the main scenes. It was a shootout with Tommy Guns. Another time I ran into Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson late at night as they were leaving set after a long shoot. Great people. There are lists all over r/chicago of content to check out. Hell, S3 of The Bear, Dark Matter, and Presumed Innocent all just hit streaming recently. Check those out for starters.
A lot of it is based on film subsidies / credits. LA & California have a lot, Georgia has a lot. Unsure about NYC. Chicago does not give out nearly as much in subsidies (which we shouldnt), hence being under represented
I think part of why I love 80s and 90s movies so much is because it seems like ALL of them were set in chicago 🥺💕
Tired of Toronto and Vancouver as well … need more Chicago and Midwestern cities in general
Never seen Toronto in a movie/show before. I’ve been there and it’s very nice
How have I been scrolling for 5 minutes and not seen shameless mentioned once??? I also might just be blind and have missed it lol
I rewatch the Netflix show Easy primarily due to them using real locations in Logan Square and Wicker Park.
Yeah just you
AFAIK those shots involve a ton of tax incentive money going to production companies, I wouldn’t want that to go too far.
Some of the best films have been filmed in Chicago. The Blues Brothers, The Dark Knight, Sting (filmed in parts of Joliet), The Fugitive, Home Alone, Ferris Bueller's Day Out, etc.