Although movies are often made in a real location, sometimes this simply isn't possible. This could be because the real location can't accommodate the production, or because it simply doesn't exist. This leaves the filmmakers with only one option, to create the location themselves.
This can prove to be incredibly expensive, and require months of hard work. But the lengths some productions go to is astonishing, recreating massive spaces that are so rich in detail you'd swear they were real. But it's not only their size that makes these sets impressive but the additional functionality these places are often required to feature. With this in mind, here are the 10 craziest sets ever built.
Batman - Gotham City
Gotham City was brought to life like never before, and the gothic grimy city remains one of the biggest and greatest sets ever made.
The entire set took up a whopping 18 soundstage's at Pinewood studios and spanned 95 achers. The looming city became a character in its own right and its depiction in the 1989 movie remains one of its best.
Inception - Spinning Hallway
Inception remains one of the greatest and most innovative films of recent years. But without a doubt one of the most impressive sequences in the film was its rotating hallway dream fight. The effect was achieved without the use of computer-generated effects but instead achieved practically by building a massive rotating centrifuge.
This allowed director Joseph Gordon-Levitt to rehearse for two weeks before filming.
Waterworld - Atoll
1995's Waterworld proved to be one of the most expensive movies ever made costing around $170 million. The sci-fi epic sees mankind driven off the land and onto massive floating mega structures.
The Atoll proved to be massive, spanning more than a 1/4 mile in circumference, and weighing over 1,000 tonnes. And was one of the most challenging aspects of the already difficult production. Filmed off the coast of Hawaii, the massive structure was an impressive behemoth but wasn't equipped with toilets, and if anyone needed to relive themselves they were forced to jump onto a barge.
The Titanic
James Cameron down to the smallest detail.
Unfortunately, this model at a 90% scale was required to be destroyed during the filming to achieve the movie's climactic sequence. The iconic ship was sunk in a water tank holding more than 5 million gallons of water.
The Matrix Reloaded - Highway
Although the Matrix sequels failed to capture the magic of the original hit, they are not without some spectacular sequences. The Matrix Reloaded's highway chase scene remains one of the best the trilogy has to offer.
The epic chase required a highway to be constructed at the cost sum of over $2 million. The highway was built at a disuses Navel base in Alameda California, and spanned more than a mile and a half.
The 10 Commandments - The Paros City
1923's The 10 Commandments features one of the biggest sets in movie history. Bringing to life The Paros City was no easy task and required the skills of more than 1500 carpenters.
However, the real secrets of this mammoth set remain something of a mystery, as the massive construction has been buried in the desert for some time now. It was only in 2017 when the head of a Giant Sphinx was uncovered and made headlines.
Team America World Police - Miniatures
From the mind of Team America: World Police used puppets and miniatures to the satirical comedy to life. This required some of the most complex miniature sets ever made.
The globe-trotting adventures of the titular team saw them go all around the world. This required the filmmakers to recreate iconic locations such as the Effie Tower and Mount Rushmore in miniature form.
Rear Window - The Street
Alfred Hitchcock's greatest movies. Although the film is set on a single street, there's far more to this elaborate set than first meets the eye.
The tall apartment buildings proved to be too tall to build any higher on the sound stage where they filmed. The production worked around this problem by removing the floor, allowing Hitchcock to make the building as tall as he needed them.
Lord of the Rings - Hobbiton
Hobbiton is without a doubt one of the greatest locations ever brought to life. Home to the hobbits, the green, and peaceful land would have been difficult to create using computer-generated imagery. Instead, the massive location was built.
The locations hills and slopes make it one of the most welcoming and iconic locations in all of Middle-earth. The success of the Lord of the Rings trilogy has even made it possible to take a tour of the hobbit town.
WarGames - NORAD
The super-secret command center NORAD was featured in 1983's WarGames, unfortunately, the film production was unable to film in the actual sensitive location. Instead, they were required to create their own interpretation of the center.
The results are a much more cinematic version of the command center, complete with larger than life screenS. This inflated people's expectation of the actual location and on more than one occasion guests have found the real center fails to live up to expectations.
