Twiddy’s Guide to North Carolina Movies

When Hollywood Meets the Outer Banks

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Whether you’re at home dreaming of a North Carolina getaway or you’re settling down in your OBX vacation rental for the night, we’ve created a list of North Carolina movies for y’all to enjoy! All of these movies (and a tv show) were either filmed in North Carolina or are about North Carolina. Let us help you choose the perfect movie so that you can kick back, relax, and enjoy the show!

Filmed on the Outer Banks Director from the Outer Banks Oscar-Winning North Carolina Movies TV Show Based on OBX Our NC Movie List Watch NC Movies in a Home Theater

Did you know several famous movies were filmed on the Outer Banks?

Nights in Rodanthe (2008), Brainstorm (1983), and Breakwater (2023) were all filmed on the Outer Banks!

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Nights in Rodanthe house

Nights in Rodanthe, an adaption of Nicholas Sparks’ 2002 novel, was filmed in an oceanfront home in Rodanthe (about 60 miles south of Corolla). This romantic drama featuring Richard Gere and Diane Lane shows many incredible shots of the OBX coastline and even the Corolla wild horses on the 4×4 beaches. If you’re in need of some Outer Banks beauty, this is the film to watch!

wright brothers memorial

Brainstorm, a sci-fi thriller featuring Christopher Walken and Louise Fletcher, was filmed mainly in North Carolina. While most of the production happened in the Research Triangle, a few of the final scenes were filmed at the Wright Brothers National Monument in Kill Devil Hills. If you are into futuristic and suspenseful movies, check out this film! 

Outer Banks Lighthouses

Breakwater is a thriller starring Dermot Mulroney, Darren Mann, Alyssa Goss, and Mena Suvari that was filmed in Corolla, as well as various locations in North Carolina. A young and impressionable ex-con breaks his parole for his prison mentor, played by Mulroney. The feature film’s official trailer includes scenes that were shot in Corolla Village, including footage of the Currituck Beach Lighthouse. Watch this film if you’re not afraid of the dark! 

north carolina movies - peanut butter falcon
Photo from Tyler Nilson's Instagram: @tylernilson

A Hollywood film director grew up on the Outer Banks

Tyler Nilson, born and raised on the Outer Banks, is now a film director based in Hollywood, California. His recent film, Peanut Butter Falcon (2019), is set on the Outer Banks and is a heartfelt film about friendship and love. It will make you smile! It will make you laugh! It will make you cry!

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"Forrest Gump Curve" at Blue Ridge Parkway

Oscar-winning movies filmed in North Carolina

Forrest Gump won 6 Oscars in 1995 including Best Picture and Best Actor (Tom Hanks) and had scenes filmed on both the Blue Ridge Parkway near Boone and the grounds of the Biltmore Estate in Asheville. In addition, Dirty Dancing, filmed partially in Lake Lure, won the Oscar for Best Original Song in 1988.

north carolina movies - netflix outer banks
Kitty Hawk Kites dresses up as Kildare Island Surfboard Co. for the season 2 release of Outer Banks.

Outer Banks – The Hit Netflix Show

By now, y’all are probably familiar with the incredibly popular Netflix teen drama Outer Banks. Winning the People’s Choice Award for the Most Bingeworthy Show of 2020, we couldn’t help but watch it all in one sitting! Based on the coastal beach towns along northeastern North Carolina, Outer Banks follows a group of teenagers as they go on a treasure hunt in a fictional Outer Banks town named Pelican, North Carolina. While the show was not filmed on the real Outer Banks, its creators based much of the world on the OBX we know and love. Twiddy and Company’s own Edward Ponton had the opportunity to interview one of the show’s creators, Jonas Pate, and discuss the ideas behind the show’s creation and his vision for Outer Banks. The hit show had fans trying to decide if they’d rather be a pogue or a kook. 

North Carolina Movies

Peanut Butter Falcon (2019) – A heartfelt adventure film, set on the Outer Banks but filmed in Georgia, written and directed by Outer Banks local, Tyler Nilson.  (Rated PG-13)

Nights in Rodanthe (2008) – A romantic drama, set and filmed on the Outer Banks. (Rated PG-13)

Brainstorm (1983) – A sci-fi thriller with a few scenes filmed at the Wright Brothers National Monument in Kill Devil Hills. (Rated PG)

Breakwater (2023) – A thriller that includes scenes filmed in Corolla Village and Currituck Beach Lighthouse. (Rated R)

Patch Adams (1998) – A comedy-drama, starring Robin Williams, that was filmed in Asheville and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. (Rated PG-13)

The Hunger Games (2012) – A sci-fi adventure film, based on the popular novel by Suzanne Collins, that was shot in parts of Asheville, Shelby, and Charlotte. (Rated PG-13)

Dirty Dancing (1987) – A romantic drama dance film partially shot in Lake Lure. (Rated PG-13)

Bull Durham (1988) – A romantic comedy film about baseball shot in Durham. (Rated R)

A Walk to Remember (2002) – A coming-of-age romantic film, based on the 1999 novel by Nicolas Sparks, shot entirely in Wilmington. (Rated PG)

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006) – A slapstick comedy film about NASCAR, starring Will Ferrell, mostly shot in Charlotte and at a mansion near Lake Norman. (Rated PG-13)

The Fugitive (1993) – An action thriller film, starring Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones, shot mostly in Jackson County in the Great Smoky Mountains. (Rated PG-13)

The Color Purple (1985) – A coming-of-age drama, directed by Steven Spielberg, filmed in Anson and Union counties near Charlotte. (Rated PG-13)

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1990) – A superhero comedy, based on fictional “heroes in a half-shell,” shot in Wilmington. (Rated PG)

The Green Mile (1999) – A crime drama, starring Tom Hanks and based on the 1996 novel by Stephen King, with some scenes filmed in Blowing Rock. (Rated R)

Forrest Gump (1994) – An Oscar-winning comedy-drama, starring Tom Hanks, with some scenes filmed on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Boone and on the grounds of the Biltmore Estate in Asheville. (Rated PG-13)

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Watch NC Movies in a Vacation Home Theater Room

Where is the best place to watch one of the many movies filmed in North Carolina? In a home theater, of course! Our vacation homes with theater rooms offer a cinema-like experience without leaving the house. Too many choices? Check out some of our favorite theater rooms!

Twiddy & Company

Twiddy & Company

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