Norway has been used as a location in a surprising amount of movie productions over the years. Here are some you may or may not know about.
Even the best Norwegian movies are rarely big worldwide smashes. However, the country still manages to steal the show in some major Hollywood blockbusters.
From the freezing ‘ice planet’ of the Hardangervidda mountain plateau to the Atlantic Road ‘road to everywhere’, Norway has lent itself to many movie productions over the years.
Such is the benefit to Norway of getting featured in major productions, the Norwegian Film Commission offers big financial incentives to internatonal producers choosing to film in the country.
Here are some of the most notable appearances by Norwegian locations in major international film releases over the years.
Finse in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
In the series fifth episode (part of the original trilogy), Darth Vader tracks down the rebels on their new secret base on the icy planet Hoth.
In the film, Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) struggle against the cold and the onslaught of the giant Imperial All Terrain Armored Transports.
In real life, the actors did struggle against the cold while the camera crew was filming through an open door of Hotel 1222. The weather was that terrible, apparently. You can visit that same hotel near the mountain station of Finse on the Oslo to Bergen railway.
There are many hiking trails around the lake and the glacier area. Be aware that the trails are best visited during the summer, unless you have a guide or are some kind of polar explorer.
How to get there
Getting to Finse is very easy by train. Take the Oslo-Bergen train (also called Bergensbanen) and get off at Finse. The hotel is right there, next to the station.
Stadlandet in Dune
This visually stunning epic film by Denis Villeneuve was filmed in Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates… and Norway!
When Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet) walks on a beach on his home planet of Caladan, he’s really on the west coast of the Stadlandet peninsula.
How to get to there
This one is off the beaten track. From Ålesund, follow the E-39 westwards until Eidsnes. Then take road 61 and follow it until Åheim (there will be a couple of ferries).
Right after Åheim, turn right on route 620 and follow it until Eikanger. From there take fv632 and follow it for about 4 km. Turn left towards Austmyr. The beach will be at the end of the road.
Sæbø and Åndalsnes in Black Widow
This Marvel Studios blockbuster was filmed in 2019 and released two years later. The main character, Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson) is seen taking a ferry and shopping at local Norwegian grocery store chain Joker.
The ferry is the Sæbø-Leknes ferry that crosses the beautiful Hjørundfjord, while the Joker is in Sæbø.
Fun fact: while she’s in the Joker, Natasha Romanoff hears a newscast on the radio about herself. The newscast, in the story, is in Norwegian, but in actual fact it seems to be read by a Swede struggling to speak Norwegian. This had Norwegian audiences chuckle.
Also featured is famous tourist attraction Trollstigen, the dizzying, winding road you can see in the movie.
How to get there
From Ålesund or Trondheim, follow road E-39 westwards until you get to the Festøya ferry pier. Then take Fv70 until Åmås and turn left on road 655. The road will lead you to Sæbø, the Joker and the Sæbø-Leknes ferry.
Trollstigen is just south of Åndalsnes. Drive a short distance on E136 and turn right on route 63. Be aware that this road is closed in the winter.
Haramsøy in The Danish Girl
This film about a transgendered woman in the early 20th century takes place in Denmark, a was mostly shot in that country… to the exception of the final scene, which was inexplicably filmed in Haramsøy, Norway.
In the story, the scene is supposed to take place in the main character’s hometown of Vejle, Denmark, which is, you must believe us, significantly flatter than Haramsøy.
At a glance, anyone who’s ever been to Denmark can tell that the scene was not filmed anywhere near Denmark. But apparently British director Tom Hooper was willing to trade topographic accuracy for dramatic scenery.
How to get there
Haramsøy is just north of Ålesund, a town which is in itself worth a detour. From Ålesund, drive East on the E136 and then North on the 658. After the tunnel, take the Fv107 and follow it until you get to Kleivavegen, where you will turn left.
Follow that road to Tennfjord, and then through the little town. Past Tennfjord, drive West on road 659 until you get to Fv146. Follow Fv146 until you get to Lepsøybrua. Then take the Haramsfjordtunellen.
Turn right after the tunnel, drive for about five minutes and right after a blocky-looking little house on the right there will be a little road that brings you up to the mountain. Somewhere along that ridge is where the scene was filmed. We won’t spoil the fun by telling you exactly where.
Oslo in Tenet
This very confusing Christopher Nolan movie partly takes place in Norway. When Robert Pattinson and John David Washington are discussing what they’re up against on top of an angular, white building, they are in fact on top of Oslo Opera House.
The Opera House is worth a look regardless of whether you enjoyed Tenet or not. The pair also wander around Tjuvholmen.
Some of the action in the story takes place at Oslo’s Gardermoen airport, but it was not actually filmed there.
How to get there
The Opera House is conveniently located just south of the Central Station. Just take a short stroll past the new Deichman Library.
The Atlantic Road in James Bond: No Time to Die
Part of the action in the latest James Bond movie takes place in Norway, and the car chase was partly filmed on Norway’s famous Atlantic Road. The road is a tourist attraction in its own right.
What Norwegians watching the movie really got a kick out of though is the appearance of Norwegian puppet celebrity Fantorangen, on a TV screen in the movie.
The house on the lake that’s seen a few times throughout the movie is also in Norway. You’ll find it about an hour's hike away from the train station in Hakadal, a village located an hour’s drive from Oslo.
How to get there
From Trondheim, drive West on the E39 until you get to Høgset. There, turn right and follow the road until Eide. In Eide, turn right onto route 64. The Atlantic Road will be about 15-20km away.
Bjorli in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Scenes showing the Hogwarts Express on its way to the famous wizarding school are typically filmed in Scotland.
But in the case of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the script called for snow which never came – despite the crew waiting for two months! Plan B was to film the scene on the Rauma line, in Norway. The actual location is close to the village of Bjorli.
The Rauma line (Raumabanen in Norwegian) is an attraction in its own right, with a starting point in the mountain town of Dombås and a last stop in the fjord town of Åndalsnes.
The 655 metre (2,149 ft) drop in elevation, the Trollveggen cliff face, and the innumerable waterfalls make it a journey to remember.
How to get there
The easiest way to get to the Rauma line is by train. Take the train to Dombås (from Oslo or Trondheim, as you wish). There, board a train to Åndalsnes and enjoy the views! If you prefer driving, the views from the road are largely the same. Take the E6 to Dombås and then the E136 towards Åndalsnes.
Preikestolen in Mission: Impossible – Fallout
If you haven’t grown tired of the Mission: Impossible movies, you can watch the seventh (!) one and see Tom Cruise hang on to the sides of world-famous Preikestolen.
The action actually takes place in Kashmir, and the scenes immediately before and after the Preikestolen one are filmed in far-away New Zealand. But for four nail biting minutes, Tom Cruise is actually in Norway.
How to get there
From Stavanger, take the subsea tunnel to Solbakk and follow the signs to Preikestolen Mountain Lodge.
Or board a car ferry from Lauvvik to Oanes, and drive to Preikestolen Mountain Lodge from there. Be prepared to dish out for a parking fee, and for a roundtrip hike of 4-5 hours. The hike should be avoided if there is snow on the mountain.
Valldal in Ex Machina
The entirety of the plot of Ex Machina takes place at a remote place in Alaska, but all the outdoor scenes were filmed in Valldal, Norway.
The compound of super-rich company boss Nathan is actually the award-winning Juvet Landscape Hotel in Valldal.
The building was designed by Norwegian architect firm Jensen & Skodvin. The contrast between the chaotic patterns of nature outside and the clean lines of Scandinavian minimalism inside is very pleasing.
How to get there
From Ålesund, drive East on the E39 and then turn south on the 650. Eventually the 650 will change names to 63. Follow the 63 until Gudbrandsjuvet (in itself well worth a stop). The turn off for the hotel will be the first road on your left after that.
Movie sights Missed Geiranger Fjord in the movie “BOLGEN(sp)”
Yup 🙂 This one was about Hollywood movies filmed in Norway. Stay tuned for another article about Norwegian productions filmed locally.
you are so “today” … The Call of the Wild starring Charlton Heston in 1972 was also made in part in Norway … though they’re supposed to be in Alaska, you can easily see the ferries (which mostlly no longer exist b/c of all the bridges oil money has built) are clearly Norwegian! but don’t worry … not even Ranker gets it …. that movies were made even before 1990, believe it or not
The very first one on the list is from 1980. Do I get points for that?
you’re doing a great job …you get 100 points
Perhaps you misunderstood the title of this article. It was “9 movie locations” and not “every movie location ever filmed in Norway” – an easy mistake to make though! Nurse!