Las Vegas is one of the world’s most popular and recognizable gambling locations. It is home to some of the biggest and most lavish casinos, hotels and resorts that all attract players and entertainment-seekers from around the globe.
One of the most iconic landmarks in Sin City is Caesars Palace. Built in 1966, the legendary location started as a small hotel and casino that wanted to highlight the Roman architecture. Through many expansion projects, an infamous fire and endless celebrity endorsements, Caesars Palace is commonly regarded as the most recognizable place on the strip.
The popularity of the casino is not, however, only due to its insistence on making every guest feel like Caesar. Over its almost 60 years, it has also been the shooting location for many Hollywood blockbuster movies — the most popular of which we’ve listed below.
Iron Man (2008)
The first movie set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and still one of the most popular Marvel movies to date, Iron Man earned $585.8 million at the box office. Considering the budget for the movie was only $140 million, this was a decent return for the multiple production companies involved.
The story follows Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), a spoilt playboy who makes his money running his father’s weapons and tech company, Stark Industries. After being kidnapped and forced to build a suit of armor that can fly him to safety, he rethinks how his company operates and faces incredible backlash from his trusted advisor.
The film takes place in multiple locations but clearly displays the Caesars Palace logo during an awards ceremony where the main character fails to arrive. Instead, he is shown playing craps on one of the many tables in the Caesars casino.
The Hangover (2009) / The Hangover III (2013)
If you’ve seen this movie, it is hard to forget the insane antics of a group of friends (Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis) who go on a road trip to Vegas for a memorable bachelor party. Unfortunately, the memory of the party gets erased by an incredible amount of hard liquor and a night of mischief.
The following day, the group runs around trying to discover what happened and correct all the mishaps they encountered along the way. With a budget of only $35 million, the movie pulled in an impressive $469.3 million, becoming the tenth highest-grossing movie in 2009.
Because there are few better places to party in Vegas, plenty of the movie takes place at Caesars Palace. The film includes shots of the casino floor, lobby, entrance, roof, Emperor’s Suite and a few other recognizable locations.
A few years later, the third movie in the Hangover trilogy returned to Caesars for a short bout of filming. This movie, which gained $362 million at the box office and had a budget of $103 million, again uses the penthouse and the roof.
One of the most memorable scenes involving the iconic building involves Chow (Ken Jeong) jumping from the penthouse balcony (which showcased the hotel’s stunning views) and parachuting down onto the Vegas strip.
Intolerable Cruelty (2003)
Following the lawyer behind the iron-clad “Massey prenup,” this movie follows Miles Massey (George Clooney) as he tries to woo gold-digger Marylin Rexroth (Catherine Zeta-Jones). The two meet after Marylin’s husband, Rex (Geoffrey Rush), hires Miles to represent him after he is caught cheating by a private investigator (Cedric the Entertainer).
After talks fall through, Miles manages to secure Rex’s fortune, and Marylin targets him for revenge. A conference in one of the many fantastic venues at Caesars Palace is the backdrop for the two to have a chance encounter where the savvy lawyer and scorned divorcée reconnect.
While he may know plenty about numbers and the law, Miles focuses less on the recommendations for playing at Caesars to win big and instead falls head over heels in love. He throws his keynote address at the conference into turmoil when he announces he believes in love and marriage.
The movie, with a budget of $60 million, generated $120.8 million at the box office and also featured a scene in one of the many fabulous Caesars hotel rooms.
Ocean’s Eleven (2001)
With a stellar cast of crooks and criminals that features the likes of George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Bitt, Andy Garcia and Julia Roberts, Ocean’s Eleven is one of many of Ocean’s movies with plans to score big. Danny Ocean and his crew use ingenious heists and trickery to rob the biggest casinos in Vegas.
While the central heist in the movie focuses on other Vegas hotspots like the Bellagio and the Mirage, Caesars Palace is one of the first casinos seen in the film. This cameo occurs during a flashback of a failed heist at the landmark establishment.
With a budget of $85 million, the movie proved that heists are worth it. It garnered $450.7 million at the box office and confirmed that fans love the idea of big casinos and elaborate scams.
The Guilt Trip (2012)
Originally titled My Mother’s Curse, this movie follows Andrew Brewster (Seth Rogan) and his crazy mother (Barbra Streisand) as they travel across the country. During their travels, the pair stay at Caesars Palace before continuing their journey.
Garnering a total of $41.9 million, the movie barely broke even, considering it had a budget of $40 million. Thankfully, part of what it did do is highlight a great location to film in Las Vegas and share some light on the funny relationships between mother and son.
Honorable Mentions
While the above films are some of the most popular and recent movies set at Caesars Palace, the casino has a long history of movie appearances. Amongst these includes a movie filmed the year after the iconic casino opened. Below are some more movies shot on location at Caesars:
- Hells Angels on Wheels (1967)
- Where It’s At (1969)
- The Only Game in Town (1970)
- Rocky III (1982)
- Fools Rush In (1997)
- Dreamgirls (2006)
- Step Up: All In (2014)
- Godzilla (2014)
- Think Like a Man Too (2014)
- Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2 (2015)
