It was here. The battlefield was here. The Carthaginians defending the city were attacked by three Roman legions. The Carthaginians were proud and brave but they couldn’t hold. They were massacred. The Arab women stripped them of the tunics and swords, and lances. And the soldiers lay naked in the sun. Two-thousand years ago. I was here.
You don’t believe me, do you, Brad?
George C. Scott – Patton (1970)
Visiting Monument Valley I had the strangest sense of deja vu, like I’d been there before. This place felt as though it was part of my personal history, even though I’d never been even remotely close. Thinking about it, I’d had the same exact feeling once before not far outside of Moab, Utah.
Back in Kane Creek Canyon in 1993, the first time I ever felt this way, it was an absolute total mystery to me. Like a mild gut punch, the sense was visceral. It made me a little uncertain at first. As a person who leans towards the Buddhist faith, it felt like I might have been here in some past life. Like Patton, I was sure I’d been here a millennia (or two or three) ago.
Bobbi-Sue (former wife #2 if you need a scorecard) said she had felt the same way. The sense of having been there before was as strong as it was palpable. Could I really be onto something?
I went to sleep dreaming of having been here before in at least one past life, maybe more.
The reason places like Monument Valley and Kane Creek Canyon elicit the feelings they do, why they have a pull on our collective conscience, has a simple answer. It’s from television and movies. We may have never been to the region before, but Hollywood essentially puts it there into our heads.
A good number of iconic movies have been filmed (whole or in part) at places like Monument Valley and Kane Creek Canyon. Inevitably, these places creep into our minds.
Here are details about a few of the movies that Hollywood has filmed in Monument Valley:
Stagecoach (1939): Directed by John Ford, this classic Western film stars Claire Trevor and John Wayne in his breakthrough role. The screenplay is an adaptation of “The Stage to Lordsburg,” a 1937 short story by Ernest Haycox. The film follows a group of strangers riding on a stagecoach through dangerous Apache territory.
The Searchers (1956): Another John Ford classic, this Western film stars John Wayne, Jeffrey Hunter, and Vera Miles. The screenplay is based on the 1954 novel by Alan Le May. Set during the Texas–Indian wars, the film follows a middle-aged Civil War veteran who spends years looking for his abducted niece.
Easy Rider (1969): Directed by Dennis Hopper, this road drama film stars Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper as two bikers who travel through the American Southwest and South carrying the proceeds from a cocaine deal. The success of Easy Rider helped spark the New Hollywood era of filmmaking during the early 1970s.
Forrest Gump (1994): Directed by Robert Zemeckis, this epic comedy-drama film stars Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump, a man with an IQ of 75 who recounts several decades of his life to strangers at a bus stop. The film was a critical and commercial success, winning six Academy Awards including Best Picture.
Mission: Impossible II (2000): Directed by John Woo, this action spy film is the second installment in the Mission: Impossible film series. It stars Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt, who is sent to Sydney to find and destroy a genetically modified disease called “Chimera”.
Cars (2006): This computer-animated sports comedy film was produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by John Lasseter, it features an ensemble voice cast including Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, Bonnie Hunt, and Larry the Cable Guy. Set in a world populated entirely by anthropomorphic talking cars and other vehicles, it follows Lightning McQueen, a hotshot rookie race car who gets stranded in Radiator Springs, a rundown town that’s past its glory days.
The Lone Ranger (2013): Directed by Gore Verbinski, this Western action film stars Johnny Depp as Tonto and Armie Hammer as John Reid, the Lone Ranger. The story is told through Tonto’s memories of his experiences with Reid as they fight injustice in the American Old West.
Those are just a few examples of the many movies that have been filmed in Monument Valley. Its stunning landscapes have made it an iconic location for classic Westerns and other films. It could be said that Monument Valley has “Gone Hollywood”.
In case you were wondering, there have also been several TV shows that were filmed at Monument Valley. Some examples include:
Dark Winds (2022-present), an AMC production that is set on the Navajo Reservation which features Monument Valley and its environs as the home of the show. It tells the story of Detective Joe Leaphorn and his work for the Navajo Tribal Police. Based on the work of author Tony Hillerman, Dark Winds features Native American actors. It takes the time to explain aspects of Navajo culture and customs, and that makes the show really unique. Season Two’s finale will be on AMC next week, and (as they say) on Hulu the following day.
Doctor Who: The Impossible Astronaut (2011), the first episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, was partially filmed in Monument Valley.
Westworld (2016-2020), an American science fiction Western television series created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, also filmed some scenes in Monument Valley.
The Amazing Race (2001-present), an American reality competition show, has also featured Monument Valley as a location in one of its episodes.
Bugs Bunny and Friends (1962-1985) Last but certainly not least, the scenery behind (literally) the Roadrunner had to be heavily inspired by Monument Valley and other classic landscapes of the American Southwest. Now that I’m looking for it, I can’t stop seeing it… Beep – beep!
I’ll be the first to admit that the list of TV shows featuring Monument Valley is somewhat less impressive than the list of films. I could probably find more shows that have filmed at Monument Valley by going back in time. But, I think my point has been made well enough.
So many landscapes, and such a short life to try and see them all!
