Photo: Getty Images
Hollywood has become synonymous with movies, many productions are filmed on site around the country. In fact, several well-known movies have been filmed in Memphis.
The city may be known for its music scene, but it has also been the background for many popular films. You may know that several movies were famously filmed in Nashville, but plenty of other sets found a home in Memphis.
Here are some of the movies you may not have known were filmed in Memphis.
Cast Away
While the majority of the film takes place on a deserted island, Tom Hanks's character started his journey in Memphis. Portraying a FedEx worker, the international hub near Memphis International Airport allowed crews to film on location.
Hustle & Flow
Terrence Howard earned an Academy Award nod for his portrayal of a Memphis pimp who aspired to become a successful hip-hop emcee in Hustle & Flow, which was mainly filmed in the city, per WKRN. Three 6 Mafia, originally from Memphis, won a Best Original Song Oscar for "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp."
Walk the Line
One of the films that was famously filmed in Nashville, this Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon film was set all around Memphis, including at Sun Studio, The Orpheum, and the Pipkin Building at the Fairgrounds, which was used as Folsom Prison in the film, per TripSavvy.
The Firm
The Firm helped launch a successful run of John Grisham movies that were also filmed in Memphis. Starring Tom Cruise, Jeanne Tripplehorn and Holly Hunter, who earned an Oscar nod for her performance, this legal thriller includes scenes of The Shrine Building, Riverside Drive, and some residential areas around town.
Great Balls of Fire!
It makes sense that this Jerry Lee Lewis biopic, starring Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder and Alec Baldwin, was filmed around Memphis, as the story was set in large part in the city. According to TripSavvy, production filmed at Graceland, Sun Studios, and even featured a spot near The Rendezvous.