Saagar Kote
‘Plane’ is an action thriller that centers around the heroics of a pilot named Brodie Torrance (Gerard Butler), who goes all out to protect his passengers from harm. Due to a lightning strike, he is forced to land the passenger plane, belonging to Trailblazer Corporation, on a war-torn island, which leads to greater troubles as rebels on the island take most passengers hostage. Torrance must now entrust his own life and that of his passengers into the hands of an accused murderer named Louis Gaspare (Mike Colter), who the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are transporting. Helmed by Jean-François Richet, the film is marked by visually captivating scenes involving the two leading men. The isolated setting of the island serves as a virtual prison from which the passengers cannot easily escape.
Plane Filming Locations
‘Plane’ is primarily filmed in Puerto Rico and California, particularly in the San Juan metropolitan area and Los Angeles. Principal photography started in early August 2021 and concluded in October of the same year. Puerto Rico’s natural beauty enabled the storyline to feel authentic. While the story unfolds on the Philippines’ Jojo island, the production team utilized the similar geographical features of the Caribbean island to paint the backdrop of the action movie.
San Juan Metropolitan Area, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico’s topography mostly consists of mountains complemented by vast flat areas on the northern and southern coasts. It served as an ideal region to set the general feel of the film. The crew moved around different locations in the San Juan metropolitan area. Barrio Obrero and the former Roosevelt Roads Naval Base in Ceiba were utilized for the purpose of shooting. Moreover, Pedrín Zorrilla Stadium, located in Calle Nemesio R. Canales, was transformed into a soundstage for taping certain indoor sequences. Alan Siegel, one of the producers, praised Puerto Rico for its filming-friendly culture.
The Puerto Rico Convention Center is possibly the largest and most technologically advanced in the Caribbean. Located at 100 Convention Boulevard in San Juan, it served as the airport terminal scene at the beginning of the film. The Convention Center includes a 152,700-square-foot Exhibition Hall that can accommodate around 17,000 people and a 39,500-square-foot ballroom that has a host capacity of around 4000.
Río Grande is a Puerto Rican town located on the eastern end of the Northern Coastal Valley. At a press conference, Governor Pedro Pierluisi praised the production team for giving wage-earning opportunities for locals and also said the team utilized Rio Grande’s spaces to shoot portions of the movie. In an interview, Mike Colter said the El Yunque Rainforest is a beautiful place to visit in Puerto Rico. He also praised the food and culture of Old San Juan. The actor added that the region was very hot during filming, which actually helped the team due to the script’s demands. The local aesthetics of Rio Grande add depth to the action scenes featuring the town.
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles is well known for being the home of many popular movies. Films like ‘Nightcrawler,’ ‘Drive,’ ‘Heat,’ and ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’ feature scenes in the city, making it an important part of the American movie industry. Most likely, the filming unit utilized studio spaces in Los Angeles to film the sequences featuring the board of Trailblazer, the owners of the flight. Multiple spaces in Los Angeles are used on a regular basis to film corporate sequences in films and shows.
Read More: Plane: Is Louis Gaspare Based on a Real Convict?
