Movies are one of the largest money-makers for a lot of companies. In 2019 alone, the global box office was worth $42.2 billion. The average movie makes an average gross of $129.9 million domestically in the US and $243.3 million internationally.
Given that they’re excellent money-makers, there’s no surprise that companies will sometimes go overboard and blow so much, if not too much money, on just a single scene. In this video, we’ll be exploring 6 of the most expensive movie scenes ever taken in film history.
6. Vanilla Sky – Time Square Scene
Starring Tom Cruise as playboy millionaire David Aames, this scene in time square only takes 30 seconds of screentime. However, because the scene called for an empty times square and refused to use CGI, director Cameron Crowe instead opted to strike a deal with the NYPD that would cost them an astounding amount of more than a million dollars for only 30 seconds.
The scene featured David Aames driving to an empty times square and then snapping out of it. This scene was fundamental to establishing the narrative, the fragilities of the human mind, and its relationships to dreams.
5. Saving Private Ryan – Doomsday Landing
Saving Private Ryan is one of the most coveted World War 2 films, and with good reason. Opposite to the quick 30 seconds of the previous scene, this D-day landing was 25 minutes of Tom Hanks acting as Captain Miller, marching through blood, bullets, and bombs. This scene was arguably what won Steven Spielberg the Oscar for Best Director.
4. I Am Legend – Bridge Collapsing Scene
Like Vanilla Sky, this movie also takes place in an empty New York. However, the scene that cost them the most was a single scene shown in a flashback. This scene features Neville, played by Will Smith, reminiscing about when New York was evacuating. He, alongside his family, was trying to rush out of New York, and out of nowhere, the military bombs the Brooklyn bridge, killing Neville’s family in the accident.
Although the scene did feature CGI, the surrounding still required thousands of extras, a lot of lighting, and according to the crew, 14 different government agencies all working together to film it.
3. Transformers: The Last Knight – Junkyard Scene
Despite being one of the least profitable of the Transformer films in the franchise, Transformers: The Last Knight is famously known as the one spent the most, especially for just one particular scene.
This scene was filmed north of Deer Valley airport in Arizona and directed by Michael Bay, possibly the most renowned director for his knack for filming action and explosions. The scene took ten days and hired 40 locals, 50 local vendors, and a lot of accommodation. In total, it’s estimated that they spent $15 million, excluding the CGI.
2. Pearl Harbor – Japanese Attack
Another Michael Bay film, this historical drama, spent a whopping $7.5 million, taking into account all the explosions, model work, and CGI that created the sequence. This scene is definitely another one for the books as it was able to capture the essence and emotion of one of the hardest-hitting disasters that graced US soil.
1. Speed 2: Cruise Control – The Crash
The less notable sequel to the 1994 Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock classic got more than triple the budget of its predecessor. It had a total estimated budget of $160 million.
Parts of it were spent on the procurement of props, CGI, and a lot of the cast, but $25 million, which would be $30 million as of today with the calculation of inflation. It was allotted for the ship crash scene at the end of the film that featured an actual ship crashing into a dock. For a movie whose CGI was mediocre, this was probably the most realistic scene in the film.
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