In the history of motion pictures in the United States, many films have been set in Los Angeles respectively in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, or a fictionalized version thereof.
The following is a list of some of the more memorable films set in Los Angeles, however the list includes a number of films which only have a tenuous connection to the city. The list is sorted by the year the film was released.
1920s
- Souls for Sale (1923)
- Sherlock Jr. (1924)
- Show People (1928)
- The Studio Murder Mystery (1929)
1930s
- Free and Easy (1930)
- What Price Hollywood? (1932)
- Movie Crazy (1932)
- The Death Kiss (1932)
- Bombshell (1933)
- Lady Killer (1933)
- Hollywood Party (1934)
- Another Face (1935)
- A Star Is Born (1937)
- Pick a Star (1937)
- It Happened in Hollywood (1937)
- Ali Baba Goes to Town (1937)
- Second Fiddle (1939)
- Hollywood Cavalcade (1939)
1940s
- Sullivan's Travels (1941)
- Hellzapoppin' (1941)
- Star Spangled Rhythm (1942)
- Double Indemnity (1944)
- Murder, My Sweet (1944)
- Hollywood Canteen (1944)
- Anchors Aweigh (1945)
- Mildred Pierce (1945)
- Abbott and Costello in Hollywood (1945)
- The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946)
- The Big Sleep (1946)
- The Jolson Story (1946)
- Fun and Fancy Free (1947)
- The Perils of Pauline (1947)
- Variety Girl (1947)
- He Walked by Night (1948)
- Jolson Sings Again (1949)
- White Heat (1949)
- Criss Cross (1948)
1950s
- Armored Car Robbery (1950)
- Sunset Boulevard (1950)
- Valentino (1951)
- Hollywood Story (1951)
- Singin' in the Rain (1952)
- The Story of Will Rogers (1952)
- The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)
- How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)
- The War of the Worlds (1953)
- A Star Is Born (1954)
- Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955)
- Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
- The Buster Keaton Story (1957)
- Jeanne Eagels (1957)
- Man of a Thousand Faces (1957)
- A Bucket of Blood (1959)
- Beloved Infidel (1959)
1960s
- The Little Shop of Horrors (1960)
- Private Property (1960)
- The Exiles (1961)
- The George Raft Story (1961)
- The Parent Trap (1961 film) (1961)
- The Three Stooges in Orbit (1962)
- What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)
- Move Over, Darling (1963)
- Muscle Beach Party (1964)
- Harlow (1965)
- The Loved One (1965)
- Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966)
- Lord Love a Duck (1966)
- Don't Make Waves (1967)
- The Graduate (1967)
- Point Blank (1967)
- Valley of the Dolls (1967)
- Targets (1968)
- Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969)
- Easy Rider (1969)
- Model Shop (1969)
- They Shoot Horses, Don't They? (1969)
1970s
- Alex in Wonderland (1970)
- Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970)
- Halls of Anger (1970)
- Diamonds are Forever (1971)
- Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
- Kotch (1971)
- Minnie and Moskowitz (1971)
- The Omega Man (1971)
- Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971)
- The New Centurions (1972)
- Blacula
- The Long Goodbye (1973)
- Blume in Love (1973)
- Save the Tiger (1973)
- Blazing Saddles (1974)
- Chinatown (1974)
- Earthquake (1974)
- Gone in 60 Seconds (1974)
- A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
- The Day of the Locust (1975)
- Dolemite (1975)
- Farewell, My Lovely (1975)
- Shampoo (1975)
- Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)
- The Bad News Bears (1976)
- Car Wash (1976)
- Carrie (1976)
- Gable and Lombard (1976)
- Gus (1976)
- The Human Tornado (1976)
- Mother, Jugs & Speed (1976)
- A Star Is Born (1976)
- Trackdown (1976)
- Two-Minute Warning (1976)
- W.C. Fields and Me (1976)
- Welcome to L.A. (1976)
- Grand Theft Auto (1977)
- Petey Wheatstraw (1977)
- The Amazing Spider-Man (1977)
- The Driver (1978)
- Grease (1978)
- Heaven Can Wait (1978)
- Killer of Sheep (1978)
- Straight Time (1978)
- Thank God It's Friday (1978)
- Up in Smoke (1978)
- 1941 (1979)
- Boulevard Nights (1979)
- The China Syndrome (1979)
- Disco Godfather (1979)
- Hardcore (1979)
- The Onion Field (1979)
- Roller Boogie (1979)
- Skatetown, U.S.A. (1979)
- Rock 'n' Roll High School (1979)
- Scooby Goes Hollywood
1980s
_01.jpg)
- 9 to 5 (1980)
- Airplane! (1980)
- Midnight Madness (1980)
- Seems Like Old Times (1980)
- Xanadu (1980)
- Carbon Copy (1981)
- The Decline of Western Civilization (1981)
- The Four Seasons (1981)
- Mommie Dearest (1981)
- S.O.B. (1981)
- True Confessions (1981)
- Zoot Suit (1981)
- Blade Runner (1982)
- E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
- Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
- Frances (1982)
- Grease 2 (1982) (local suburbs, e.g. Hawthorne)
- The Entity (1982)
- Halloween III: Season of the Witch (1982)
- I Ought to Be in Pictures (1982)
- White Dog (1982)
- Blue Thunder (1983)
- Boardinghouse (1983)
- Mr. Mom (1983)
- The Star Chamber (1983)
- Star 80 (1983)
- Valley Girl (1983)
- Angel (1984)
- Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
- Body Double (1984)
- Crimes of Passion (1984)
- Irreconcilable Differences (1984)
- The Karate Kid (1984)
- Night of the Comet (1984)
- Protocol (1984)
- Repo Man (1984)
- Swing Shift (1984)
- The Terminator (1984)
- 8 Million Ways to Die (1985)
- Back to the Future (1985) ( Universal City, California)
- Fletch (1985)
- Into the Night (1985)
- Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)
- To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
- Tuff Turf (1985)
- Teen Wolf (1985)
- Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986)
- Echo Park (1986)
- The Karate Kid Part II (1986)
- Modern Girls (1986)
- Ruthless People (1986)
- That's Life! (1986)
- Top Gun (1986)
- Barfly (1987)
- Beverly Hills Cop II (1987)
- Born in East L.A. (1987)
- Dragnet (1987)
- The Hidden (1987)
- La Bamba (1987)
- Less than Zero (1987)
- Lethal Weapon (1987)
- Maid to Order (1987)
- The Running Man (1987)
- Summer School (1987)
- Alien Nation (film) (1988)
- Big Business (1988)
- Colors (1988)
- The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988)
- Die Hard (1988)
- Earth Girls Are Easy (1988)
- For Keeps (1988)
- License To Drive (1988)
- Miracle Mile (1988)
- The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
- Stand and Deliver (1988)
- Sunset (1988)
- Tequila Sunrise (1988)
- They Live (1988)
- Twins (1988)
- Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
- Back to the Future Part II ( Universal City, California) (1989)
- Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
- Chances Are (1989)
- The Karate Kid Part III (1989)
- Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)
- Miracle Mile (1989)
- Skin Deep (1989)
- Tango & Cash (1989)
- Troop Beverly Hills (1989)
1990s
1990
- Back to the Future Part III ( Universal City, California)
- Internal Affairs
- Predator 2
- Pretty Woman
- To Sleep with Anger
- The Two Jakes
- House Party (1990 film)
1991
- The Addams Family
- Barton Fink
- Beastmaster 2: Through the Portal of Time
- Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey
- Boyz n the Hood
- Critters 3
- The Doors
- Father of the Bride
- Grand Canyon
- The Guyver
- L.A. Story
- The Last Boy Scout
- Life Stinks
- McBain
- Night on Earth
- Point Break
- The Rocketeer
- Samurai Cop
- Showdown in Little Tokyo
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day
1992
1993
1994
- Airheads
- Angels in the Outfield (1994 film)
- Beverly Hills Cop III
- Clean Slate
- Clifford
- Color of Night
- Double Dragon
- Ed Wood
- Floundering
- Guyver: Dark Hero
- Jimmy Hollywood
- Little Giants
- The Little Rascals
- Mind Twister
- Murder Was The Case
- Naked Gun 33+1⁄3: The Final Insult
- The Next Karate Kid
- Pulp Fiction
- Speed
- Swimming with Sharks
- Wes Craven's New Nightmare
1995
- The Baby-Sitters Club
- Batman Forever
- The Brady Bunch Movie
- Clueless
- Devil in a Blue Dress
- Father of the Bride Part II
- Forget Paris
- Friday
- Get Shorty
- A Goofy Movie
- Heat
- Higher Learning
- Leaving Las Vegas
- Live Nude Girls
- My Family, Mi Familia
- The Net
- Nick of Time
- Species
- Strange Days
- Tales from the Hood
1996
- 2 Days in the Valley
- The Craft
- The Crow: City of Angels
- Demolition Man
- Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood
- Escape from L.A.
- Get on the Bus
- Independence Day
- Kazaam
- Last Man Standing
- Matilda
- Mulholland Falls
- Set It Off
- Spy Hard
- Swingers
- A Thin Line Between Love and Hate
1997
- Air Force One
- Batman & Robin
- Bean
- Beverly Hills Ninja
- Boogie Nights
- Cats Don't Dance
- Face/Off
- Good Burger
- Jackie Brown
- L.A. Confidential
- Lost Highway
- Money Talks
- Nothing To Lose
- One Eight Seven
- Speed 2: Cruise Control
- Steel
- Volcano
- Quiet Days in Hollywood
1998
- An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn
- American History X
- The Big Lebowski
- Blade
- Bulworth
- Caught Up
- City of Angels
- Gods and Monsters
- Hurlyburly
- L.A. Without a Map
- Lethal Weapon 4
- A Night at the Roxbury
- The Parent Trap (1998 film)
- The Players Club
- Playing by Heart
- The Rugrats Movie
- Rush Hour
- Slums of Beverly Hills
- Twilight
1999
2000s
2000
- 3 Strikes
- The Anniversary Party
- Big Momma's House
- Bread and Roses
- Brother
- Charlie's Angels
- Disney's The Kid
- Gone in 60 Seconds
- Hanging Up
- Hellraiser: Inferno
- Leprechaun in the Hood
- Lost Souls
- Love & Basketball
- Next Friday
- Rugrats in Paris: The Movie
- Scream 3
- The Three Stooges
- Traffic
- Welcome to Hollywood
- What's Cooking?
2001
2002
2003
- And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself
- Baadasssss!
- Biker Boyz
- Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
- Confidence
- The Core
- Cradle 2 the Grave
- Freaky Friday
- Holes
- Hollywood Homicide
- Hulk
- The Italian Job
- Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood
- Los Angeles Plays Itself
- Malibu's Most Wanted
- A Man Apart
- Matchstick Men
- National Security
- Rugrats Go Wild
- Stuck on You
- S.W.A.T.
- Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
- Thirteen
- Wonderland
2004
2005
2006
- 10.5: Apocalypse
- Akeelah and the Bee
- Alpha Dog
- Belly 2: Millionaire Boyz Club
- Big Momma's House 2
- The Black Dahlia
- Bobby
- Bring It On: All or Nothing
- Cars
- Click
- Crank
- Dreamgirls
- Friends with Money
- Gridiron Gang
- Harsh Times
- The Holiday
- Hollywoodland
- Inland Empire
- Jackass Number Two
- Little Miss Sunshine
- Man About Town
- Nearing Grace
- Quinceañera
- Snakes on a Plane
- Stan
- Waist Deep
- X-Men: The Last Stand
2007
2008
- Ace of Hearts
- Another Cinderella Story
- Bedtime Stories
- Beverly Hills Chihuahua
- Bolt
- Changeling
- Drillbit Taylor
- Eagle Eye
- The Eye
- Forgetting Sarah Marshall
- Garden Party
- Get Smart
- Hancock
- The Informers
- Iron Man
- Lakeview Terrace
- The Love Guru
- Quarantine
- Role Models
- Street Kings
- Sunday School Musical
- The Take
- Taken
- War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave
- Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's (2008)
2009
- 17 Again
- 2012
- 2012: Supernova
- 500 Days of Summer
- All About Steve
- Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
- Black Dynamite
- Crank: High Voltage
- Crossing Over
- Drag Me to Hell
- Fast & Furious
- Funny People
- G-Force
- I Love You, Man
- The Informers
- Land of the Lost
- My Sister's Keeper
- Notorious
- Obsessed
- A Single Man
- The Soloist
- Spread
- Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li
- Terminator Salvation
- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
- Totally Spies! The Movie
- The Ugly Truth
- Zombieland
2010s
2010
- 30 Days of Night: Dark Days
- The A-Team
- Beginners
- Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore
- Cyrus
- Get Him to the Greek
- Greenberg
- Horrorween
- Inception
- Iron Man 2
- Jackass 3D
- The Kids Are All Right
- Kites
- The Losers
- Mega Shark Versus Crocosaurus
- My Name is Khan
- Resident Evil: Afterlife
- The Runaways
- Skyline
- Takers
- Tooth Fairy
- The Town
- Tron: Legacy
- Valentine's Day
- Yu-Gi-Oh!: Bonds Beyond Time
2011
- The Artist
- Battle: Los Angeles
- Battle of Los Angeles
- Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2
- Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son
- Born to Be a Star
- Cars 2
- Crazy, Stupid, Love
- Cross
- Drive
- Fast Five
- Friends with Benefits
- From Prada to Nada
- Ghost Shark 2: Urban Jaws
- Girl Walks into a Bar
- The Green Hornet
- Green Lantern
- The Hit List
- Hop
- Horrible Bosses
- In Time
- Insidious
- Jack and Jill
- Just Go with It
- Larry Crowne
- Like Crazy
- The Lincoln Lawyer
- The Muppets
- No Strings Attached
- The Pool Boys
- Princess and the Pony
- S.W.A.T.: Firefight
- Transformers: Dark of the Moon
2012
2013
2014
- 10.0 Earthquake
- Alex of Venice
- Android Cop
- Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain
- Cake
- Chef
- Echo Park
- Girltrash: All Night Long
- The Gambler
- Horrible Bosses 2
- Inherent Vice
- Let's Be Cops
- Starry Eyes
- Step Up: All In
- Taken 3
- The Liquid Psychologist
- Million Dollar Arm
- Nightcrawler
- The Purge: Anarchy
- Walk of Shame
- Welcome to Me
2015
2016
2017
2018
- A Star Is Born
- Den of Thieves
- Destroyer
- Followed
- The Happytime Murders
- Peppermint
- Poor Greg Drowning
- Billionaire Boys Club
- The Kissing Booth
- Mid90s
- Electric Love
2019
- 1BR
- Acceleration
- Booksmart
- Captain Marvel
- The Drone
- The Fanatic
- Ford v Ferrari
- Madness in the Method
- Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
- Rocketman
- Spies in Disguise
- Stuber
- Yesterday
2020s
2020
- The Banker
- Birds of Prey
- Like a Boss
- Onward
- Scoob!
- Songbird
- The Tax Collector
- Tenet
- The Way Back
- Kajillionaire
2021
- Bliss
- Dear Evan Hansen
- F9
- The Forever Purge
- Free Guy
- Ghostbusters: Afterlife
- The Little Things
- Licorice Pizza
- Mortal Kombat
- Space Jam: A New Legacy
2022
- Ambulance
- Babylon
- The Bad Guys
- Blonde
- Day Shift
- Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
- Don't Worry Darling
- Everything Everywhere All at Once
- The Fabelmans
- Jackass Forever
- Moonfall
- Nope
- Scream
- The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
- Top Gun: Maverick
2023
- Air
- Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
- Barbie
- Creed III
- Evil Dead Rise
- Fast X
- House Party (2023 film)
- M3GAN
- Missing
- Oppenheimer
- Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
- 80 for Brady
2024
Los Angeles destroyed in films
- The War of the Worlds (1953) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
- Earthquake (1974) (destroyed by an earthquake)
- Night of the Comet (1984) (destroyed by a comet)
- The Terminator (1984) (destroyed by artificially intelligent machines)
- The Great Los Angeles Earthquake (1990) (destroyed by an earthquake)
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) (destroyed by a nuclear bomb)
- Double Dragon (1994) (destroyed by a major earthquake in 2007)
- Escape from L.A. (1996) (destroyed by a major earthquake and tsunami in 2000)
- Independence Day (1996) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
- Volcano (1997) (destroyed by a large volcanic eruption)
- Tycus (2000) (destroyed by a piece of the Moon after being hit by comet Tycus)
- Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003) (destroyed by a nuclear bomb)
- The Day After Tomorrow (2004) (destroyed by a series of massive tornadoes)
- 10.5: Apocalypse (2006) (destroyed by an earthquake)
- Dragon Wars (2007) (destroyed by a giant monster attack)
- Pandemic (2007) (destroyed by a bird flu outbreak)
- Transformers (2007) (destroyed by a series of giant robots)
- Life After People (2008) (disintegration)
- War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave (2008) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
- Terminator Salvation (2009) (destroyed by artificially intelligent machines)
- 2012 (2009) (destroyed by a massive earthquake)
- 2012: Supernova (2009) (destroyed by a supernova)
- Zombieland (2009) (destroyed by a zombie apocalypse)
- Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010) (destroyed by an epidemic)
- Skyline (2010) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
- Battle: Los Angeles (2011) (destroyed by an alien invasion)
- Disaster Wars: Earthquake vs. Tsunami (2013) (destroyed by a tsunami)
- This Is the End (2013) (destroyed by the Rapture)
- 10.0 Earthquake (2014) (destroyed by a massive earthquake)
- Fire Twister (2015) (destroyed by a fire tornado)
- L.A. Apocalypse (2015) (annihilation of the city due to an explosion)
- San Andreas (2015) (destroyed by a massive earthquake)
- Terminator Genisys (2015) (destroyed by a nuclear bomb)
- Destruction: Los Angeles (2017) (destroyed by a massive earthquake)
- Eruption LA (2018) (destroyed by a volcanic eruption)
- " Moonfall" (2022) (destroyed by the Moon)
Anime
- Pet Shop of Horrors (1999)
- Death Note (2006-2007)
- Heroman (2010)
- Harukana Receive (2018)
- Mutafukaz (2018)
Los Angeles Set in Animation
- A Goofy Movie (1995)
- Cats Don't Dance (1997)
- Space Chimps (2008)
- Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)
- Despicable Me (2010)
- Trigun: Badlands Rumble (2010)
- Rio (2011)
- The Adventures of Tintin (film) (2011)
- Puss in Boots (2011)
- Brave (2012)
- Despicable Me 2 (2013)
- Rio 2 (2014)
- The Anthem of Heart (2015)
- The Good Dinosaur (2015)
- Throne of Elves (2016)
- Moana (2016)
- Ice Age: Collision Course (2016)
- The Angry Birds Movie (2016)
- Gantz: O (2016)
- Despicable Me 3 (2017)
- Coco (2017)
- Cars 3 (2017)
- The Grinch (2018)
- The Stolen Princess (2018)
- Smallfoot (film) (2018)
- The Angry Birds Movie 2 (2019)
- Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (2023)
See also
- List of television shows set in Los Angeles
- Lists of films based on location
- Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003), a documentary about the representation of Los Angeles on film