HBO’s The Last of Us turned downtown Calgary into a quarantined Boston, and it does the job rather convincingly.
Travel Alberta says the first season was filmed in more than 180 locations across the province between July 2021 and June 2022, and calls it the biggest budget TV production ever to shoot in Canada. That’s a lot of Alberta on screen. Calgary, Edmonton, Fort Macleod, Canmore and Waterton Lakes National Park all show up, along with the Highwood and the Canadian Badlands.
The Calgary details are the fun ones. In episode one, the 4th Avenue Flyover was closed for filming in October 2021, Hotel Arts doubled as a Boston museum, and the Calgary Courts Centre became a U.S. Post Office. The Globe Cinema on 8 Avenue SW got a bit of fame when its sign stayed in the show, and a laundromat set went up in a downtown alley off Macleod Trail. If you love cinema, the Globe is probably already a favourite, and our Calgary cinema map makes a good companion.
Then come the cameos. The Wilder Institute and Calgary Zoo hosted a giraffe scene in spring 2022. Fish Creek Provincial Park’s Shannon Terrace bridge appears in episode three, and the Barrier Lake overlook in Bow Valley Provincial Park played the Jackson lookout in episode nine. SAIT and Mount Royal University stepped in as the University of Eastern Colorado. Students there probably have a fun new fact about their school.
Episode four is a road trip in itself. The crew worked in Strathmore, Lethbridge, Claresholm, Carsland, Priddis, Bragg Creek, Nanton and Calgary, and the Airport Trail tunnel near Calgary’s airport made the cut. Down in Lethbridge, the High Level Bridge, which opened in 1909, got its own moment. In episode five, a battle set was built from scratch near the Calgary Film Centre. Making a ruined city look lived in takes a lot of construction.
Out in the foothills and the mountains, Fort Macleod’s main street opens the story as downtown Austin, and Canmore stands in for Jackson, Wyoming. Travel Alberta adds that both lead actors named Canmore as their favourite filming location, which is a nice thing for a mountain town to hear. The photo above shows the Three Sisters peaks over Canmore, so you can see why.
Heritage Park has its own role. The park’s film history page says the series filmed there in 2021, with the Wainwright Hotel and several other buildings serving as major sets. The park counts over 80 productions since staff began tracking them in 1972, 43 feature films and 40 television series. It adapts its buildings for each shoot without harming their historic character, which is the careful treatment old wooden buildings deserve.
Season two added more. The first episode used Exshaw, Highway 1A and Fortress Mountain near Kananaskis to look like Jackson, though much of that season was shot in British Columbia. Fortress Mountain has a movie résumé of its own, which we covered in Fortress Mountain Keeps Turning Up in Big Movies.
Pick one episode and find one real location from it. Seeing a place you know pretend to be somewhere else is a small thrill of living here. Walk the 4th Avenue Flyover or drive out to Canmore with the show fresh in your head.
Cool Runnings Slid Into Calgary and Never Really Left pairs nicely with this one, and The Revenant Found Its Frozen Frontier in Kananaskis is close behind.
If this one hooked you, we think One Yellow Rabbit Turned Calgary January Into a Rodeo and Shanghai Noon Turned Drumheller Into Nevada are a good next read.
Quick answers
Travel Alberta says the first season of The Last of Us was filmed in more than 180 locations across Alberta. Calgary, Edmonton, Fort Macleod, Canmore and Waterton Lakes National Park all appear, along with the Highwood and the Canadian Badlands.
Travel Alberta says the first season was filmed between July 2021 and June 2022. It calls The Last of Us the biggest budget TV production ever to shoot in Canada, with Alberta supplying more than 180 locations.
Downtown Calgary stands in for a quarantined Boston. In episode one, Hotel Arts doubled as a Boston museum, the Calgary Courts Centre became a U.S. Post Office, and the 4th Avenue Flyover was closed for filming in October 2021.
Fort Macleod’s main street opens the story as downtown Austin, and Canmore stands in for Jackson, Wyoming. In Calgary, SAIT and Mount Royal University stepped in as the University of Eastern Colorado for the series.
Sources: Travel Alberta, The Last of Us locations in Alberta; Heritage Park, long history in the film industry; Visit Calgary, 9 famous filming locations.
