Hollywood's biggest and brightest stars will gather in Los Angeles on Sunday, March 10 to celebrate the biggest achievements in cinema over the past year during the 96th Academy Awards.
This year, there are 10 beloved films nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. Like the actors, actresses, writers, directors and crew who helped make them, the nominees took viewers to destinations all around the world through their fascinating and diverse filming locations.
Here are some of the notable places that helped bring these iconic movie settings to life.
Los Alamos and Santa Fe, New Mexico - Oppenheimer
Christopher Nolan's epic biographical thriller Oppenheimer has been praised for its authenticity and leads the ceremony with a whopping 13 nominations, including for Best Picture. A big part of that success is the result of the movie being filmed in and around Los Alamos—a key location for the Manhattan Project—and nearby Santa Fe, New Mexico.
"Several Manhattan Project era buildings were utilized in the making of the movie including the Oppenheimer house where J. Robert Oppenheimer and his wife Kitty raised their family," the National Park Service states.
To experience some of the top sites for themselves, visitors to Los Alamos can download the free NPS App to use during a self-guided walking tour.
Los Angeles, California - Barbie
Another summer blockbuster, the fantasy comedy Barbie was shot in England's Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden in addition to Los Angeles.
Movie-goers likely recognized the Venice Beach Skatepark, Wilshire Boulevard, and areas within Santa Monica and Long Beach.
Osage County, Oklahoma - Killers of the Flower Moon
Martin Scorsese's adaptation of David Grann's namesake non-fiction book, Killers of the Flower Moon takes viewers to the actual setting where the 1920s "Reign of Terror" took place in Osage County just northwest of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
With the help of the Osage Nation, scenes were shot in Osage cities and towns such as Pawhuska, Fairfax and Bartlesville, with more than 50 production locations being used.
"To be able to tell this story on the land where these events took place is incredibly important and critical to allowing us to portray an accurate depiction of the time and people," said Scorsese.
Boston and the South Shore, Massachusetts - American Fiction
American Fiction, which stars Jeffrey Wright as a struggling novelist and professor in Boston, was shot on location in Boston and the South Shore in Scituate.
The crew shot scenes in the West Roxbury and Fort Point neighborhoods of Boston as well as Peggotty Beach and nearby Sand Hills.
The South Shore of Massachusetts stars in American Fiction. (Photo Credit: Cody/Adobe Stock)
Lennox, Massachusetts; New York City and Ely, Cambridgeshire, England - Maestro
On the other side of Massachusetts, the Tanglewood music venue in Lennox is where some of the Bradley Cooper project Maestro was shot in May 2022.
The biographic drama depicting the life of legendary American composer Leonard Bernstein was also shot in New York City as well as Cambridgeshire, England's Ely Cathedral.
Massachusetts - The Holdovers
The Bay State was all over the silver screen in 2023, including three Best Picture nominees with The Holdovers also shooting in Massachusetts. The Paul Giamatti-led comedy-drama was filmed at not one but five real-life schools, including Groton School, Northfield Mount Hermon School, Deerfield Academy, St. Mark's School and Fairhaven High School.
Scenes were also shot in Boston. Notable sites include the historic Somerville and Orpheum theatres and the Boston Common.
Auschwitz and Jelenia Gora, Poland - The Zone of Interest
The Zone of Interest took cast, crew and movie-goers to the historic Auschwitz concentration camp. (Photo Credit: marcovarro/Adobe Stock)
Jonathan Glazer's well-received historical drama The Zone of Interest, which tells the story of real-life German Nazi commandant Rudolf Höss and his wife, Hedwig, as they raise their family next to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp during World War II was filmed in Auschwitz during the summer of 2021 as well as parts of Jelenia Góra, Poland just a few hours away.
The movie's production designer, Chris Oddy, spent months developing a replica of the Höss residence near the camp, which is among the top sites to visit in Poland.
Seoul and New York City - Past Lives
Romantic drama Past Lives was shot in two major cities thousands of miles apart in both Seoul—a city of hidden gems—and New York City. Viewers may notice South Korea's MMCA Outdoor Sculpture Park in addition to McNally Jackson Books in Brooklyn, Jane's Carousel, Madison Square Park and the Statue of Liberty, among other famous sites.
France - Anatomy of a Fall
French legal drama Anatomy of a Fall shot its scenes throughout the country, which Americans are already flocking to this year.
Scene locations include Paris and Charente-Maritime on the southwestern coast in addition to the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in places like Maurienne and Villarembert. Filming also took place in Montbonnot-Saint-Martin and Grenoble.
Budapest, Hungary - Poor Things
The genre-blending Poor Things, starring Academy Award-winner Emma Stone in a one-of-a-kind role, was largely filmed on soundstages at Origo Studios in captivating Budapest, Hungary. Korda Studios in Etyek, Hungary was also used.
Therefore, there was a lot of movie magic that went into showcasing real-life destinations such as London, Paris and Lisbon.
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