On my first day in Vancouver, I was amazed by how the city was both a stranger and familiar at the same time. As it turns out, I had seen those places before and not through research for the trip — they were in all my favorite Hollywood movies and television series.
In fact, you don’t really have to go searching for film spots because they are always around the corner. But I’m not going to lie, I get a secret thrill every time I see a scene and know for sure that I’ve been there, so here are some of the places you might want to seek out.
Deadpool Film Spots
Fun Fact: Ryan Reynolds, the star of Deadpool, was born in Vancouver and he returned to his hometown to shoot the films. The first movie had some scenes in Vancouver but the second saw the mass closure (the biggest yet in the city) of many streets.
The strip club where Vanessa worked at is filmed in club No.5 Orange with the exterior of the Cobalt Hotel.
Vanessa gets abducted behind the club in Arch Alley.
Deadpool seeks the help of the X-Men at Hatley Castle in Victoria, Vancouver Island. The castle was also used for the filming of the X-Men movies.
In Deadpool 2, many fighting scenes were filmed in the streets of Vancouver. Just to name a few, some of the streets are Granville Street, Thurlow Street, West Hastings, and West Cordova.
Twilight Film Spots
Regardless of whether you loved or cringed watching the popular vampires series, Twilight had a cult following and till today, has many tours solely dedicated to visiting the filming locations.
As with any teenage drama, there is bound to be a school where many scenes were shot in and Forks High School, in particular, is actually the site of David Thompson Secondary School. Yes, the love at first sight moment, in the cafeteria, was taken within these premises.
In the sequel Eclipse, a bunch of new-born vampires emerges from the waters, to represent their arrival from nearby Seattle. This shot was taken in Belcarra Regional Park at Sasamat Lake. Supposedly, other fight scenes were shot in this park too.
The Cullens house is also located along a creek in West Vancouver and there are many other scenes that were taken in New Westminster and historic Gastown.
There are many other notable films that were filmed in Vancouver too, including 50 Shades of Grey, Fantastic Four (both 2005 and reboot series). Some films that were mainly shot in Vancouver’s studios are Night at the Museum, Planet of the Apes, and Final Destination.
But, the thriving film industry in Vancouver is not limited to only movies. They are currently producing multiple hit television series.
DC Superheros Series Film Spots
In recent years, there has been a string of action-packed televisions series on networks such as CW and Netflix. Perhaps with Marvel dominating the big screen, DC superheroes including Supergirl, The Flash, Batwoman, Arrow, and DC Legends of Tomorrow, find their light on your home channels. And yes, all of them are based in Vancouver.
In an empowering women series, Supergirl beats the hypnotized Superman in a fight at Robson Plaza (as seen in the background).
Prior to that, she had also saved the president at the Bloedel Conservatory in Queen Elizabeth’s Park.
While there are many other scenes to go on about, we have many other hit drama series to talk about too.
The Good Doctor Film Spots
Instead of watching bones get broken, how about watching them get healed? In season one of The Good Doctor in St. Bonaventure Hospital, Shaun talks to his colleagues and adopted dad in the cafeteria of Vancouver Community College.
Other popular series filmed in Vancouver include everyone’s favorite childhood comic book series, Riverdale, as well as other action series Alcatraz, and 21 Jump Street.
With so many films taking place in the city, nearly every corner could have been a film spot so wander around and let that imagination run free.
