All Of Terminator Dark Fate's Mexico Scenes Were Shot 5,000 Miles From The Country

Movie locations can be a tricky thing. Sometimes, you can't shoot somewhere because of the cost. Sometimes, it's politics. However, one thing the Terminator: Dark Fate home release revealed is that every shot from Mexico--the central location for the majority of the movie--didn't even take place in that country. It was all shot in Spain.

That odd fact is revealed on the "World Builders" featurette, which is included in the home release of Terminator: Dark Fate. The creators behind the movie discussed making Spain look like Mexico. "Spain is a good double for Mexico," explained production designer Sonja Klaus. "It's often used because of the topography, the light, the shapes that you get."

But why couldn't Dark Fate take place south of the American border? "A lot of the movie takes place in Mexico and the southern US," said director Tim Miller during the featurette. "And we couldn't go to Mexico for a variety of reasons, so we shot 30-some days in Spain."

While this probably comes as quite a surprise to people who saw the movie, it's a relatively common practice in Hollywood. Many TV shows and movies find themselves filming the movie elsewhere. The first Wayne's World movie, which takes place in the far west Chicago suburb of Illinois, only has one shot in the entire film of that city--a quick look at a local White Castle, on the outskirts of Aurora. Why this Dark Fate revelation is a great accomplishment is because the set decorators and dressers really pulled this feat off exceptionally well, even though they filmed 5,000 miles away from the story's location.

In GameSpot's review of Terminator: Dark Fate, Michael Rougeau said, "Terminator: Dark Fate doesn't set a new bar for action movies like Terminator 2 did back in 1991. But that's not a realistic expectation--T2 was a once-in-a-generation kind of film. What Dark Fate does is establish a new--if-familiar--jumping-off point from which the Terminator series can hopefully move forward. It breaks the cycle of terrible Terminator sequels and spin-offs, and begins a new, brighter timeline. Humanity may always be its own worst enemy, but Dark Fate proves that we at least have the capacity to make some more kick-ass Terminator movies before judgment day arrives."

Terminator: Dark Fate special features:

4K UHD Blu-ray combo features:

• Deleted and Extended Scenes
• A Legend Reforged
• World Builders
• Dam Busters: The Final Showdown
• VFX Breakdown: The Dragonfly

Digital only features:

• Creating a New Threat
• Future Tech
• Previz Sequences
• Factory Fight
• Air Battle to Humvee Falling
• Humvee Dam
• Commentary by director Tim Miller and editor Julian Clarke
• Deleted scenes introduction and commentary by Tim Miller

Terminator: Dark Fate is available now and comes to 4K and Blu-ray on January 28.

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