West Virginia in the Movies
Motion Picture & Television Productions
on Location in West Virginia
Dozens of feature films – independent and studio – have shot on location in West Virginia, of which a partial list is provided below.
2006, WE ARE MARSHALL, Warner Bros.
DIRECTOR: McG
CAST: Matthew McConaughey, David Strathairn, Matthew Fox, Anthony Mackie, Ian McShane, Kate Mara, Arlen Escarpeta, Robert Patrick
LOCATIONS: Huntington (Cabell County), Ceredo (Wayne County)
2005, BUBBLE, Magnolia Pictures
DIRECTOR: Steven Soderberg
CAST: Debbie Doebereiner, Dustin James Ashley, Misty Wilkins, Decker Moody
LOCATIONS: Parkersburg (Wood County)
2003, WIN A DATE WITH TAD HAMILTON!, DreamWorks LLC
DIRECTED BY: Robert Luketic
CAST: John Duhamel, Kate Bosworth, Topher Grace, Nathan Lane, Sean Hayes
(Fayetteville, Grandview, and along the Kanawha River; Fayette, Raleigh, and Kanawha Counties) www.winadatewithtadhamilton.com
2002, GODS AND GENERALS, Turner Pictures and Warner Bros.
DIRECTED BY: Ron Maxwell
CAST: Robert Duvall, Jeff Daniels, Stephen Lang
(Harper's Ferry and surrounding areas; Jefferson County)
2001, SEVEN TO MIDNIGHT, Sorry Dog Films
DIRECTED BY: Scott Martin
CAST: Scott A. Martin, Stella Parton, Jim Meredith, Steve McMillion, Amy Fleshman
(Charleston; Kanawha County)
2001, CORRECT CHANGE, Down Home Films and Terra Entertainment
DIRECTED BY: Mike Lilly
CAST: Russ McCubbin, Mollie Brown, Michael Martin, Jonah Lilly
(Moundsville and Charleston; Marshall and Kanawha Counties)
2000, MOTHMAN, Mr. Black Productions
DIRECTED BY: Douglas TenNapel
CAST: Edward Schofield, Douglas Langdale, John Frederick Jones, Jill McLean
(Point Pleasant; Mason County)
1997, WHATEVER, Sony Pictures Classics
DIRECTED BY: Susan Skoog
CAST: Liza Weil, Chad Morgan, Frederic Forrest
(Wheeling, Ohio County)
1997, PARDES, Eros International
DIRECTED BY: Subhash Ghai
CAST: Shahrukh Khan, Amrish Puri, Mahima Chaudhry
(in Hindi language; New Vrindaban community and Palace of Gold; Marshall County)
1996, PRIMAL FEAR, Paramount Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Gregory Hoblit
CAST: Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand
(Greenbrier County)
1995, WHISPERS FROM SPACE
DIRECTED BY: Ralph Coon
(Weston; Lewis County)
1994, LASSIE, Paramount Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Daniel Petrie
CAST: Tom Guiry, Helen Slater, Jon Tenney, Brittany Boyd, Frederic Forrest, Richard Farnsworth
(Sandstone Falls, Hinton; Summers County)
1994, THE ANTLER BOY
DIRECTED BY: Tina Mascara
CAST: Dylan Hundley
(Fairmont and Monongah; Marion County)
1991, THE DANCING OUTLAW, Public Broadcasting
DIRECTED BY: Jacob Young
CAST: Wattie Green, Dorsey White, Jerry White, Jesco White, Norma Jean White
(documentary; Boone County)
1990, PARADISE PARK, Silver Lake International Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Daniel Boyd
CAST: Larry Groce, Jeniphur Gurney, John McIntyre, Michael Martin, Jim Wolfe, Gary Brown, Johnny PayCheck
(Kanawha County)
1989, STRANGEST DREAMS: INVASION OF THE SPACE PREACHERS, Troma Films
DIRECTED BY: Daniel Boyd
CAST: Jim Wolfe, Guy Nelson, Eliska Hahn, Gary Brown, Jesse Johnson, John Riggs
(Kanawha County)
1986, CHILLERS, Troma Films
DIRECTED BY: Daniel Boyd
CAST: Jesse Emery, Marjorie Fitzsimmons, Jonathan Wolf, Laurie Pennington
(Kanawha County)
1986, MATEWAN, Artisan Entertainment
DIRECTED BY: John Sayles
CAST: Chris Cooper, James Earl Jones, Mary McDonnell, Will Oldham, David Strathairn
(Thurmond, New River Gorge regions; Fayette County)
1985, SWEET DREAMS, TriStar Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Karel Reisz
CAST: Jessica Lange, Ed Harris, John Goodman
(Martinsburg; Berkeley County)
1984, PUDD'NHEAD WILSON, Public Broadcasting
DIRECTED BY: Alan Bridges
CAST: Lise Hilboldt, Ken Howard, James Pritchett
(Harpers Ferry; Jefferson County)
1983, RECKLESS, MGM Entertainment
DIRECTED BY: James Foley
CAST: Daryl Hannah, Aidan Qiunn
(Weirton, Wheeling; Hancock and Ohio Counties)
1978, THE DEER HUNTER, Universal Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Michael Cimino
CAST: Robert De Niro, John Cazale, John Savage, Christopher Walken, Meryl Streep
(Hancock and Brooke Counties)
1975, THE HATFIELDS AND MCCOYS, ABC-TV
DIRECTED BY: Clyde Ware
CAST: Jack Palance, Steve Forrest, Richard Hatch, James Keach, Robert Carradine, Joe Estevez
(southern West Virginia)
1973, WHEN THE LINE GOES THROUGH, All Seasons Video
DIRECTED BY: Clyde Ware
CAST: Martin Sheen, Tillie Allen, Dick Barton, Vicki Carroll, Davey Davison
(north central West Virginia)
1972, NO DRUMS, NO BUGLES, Cinerama Releasing
DIRECTED BY: Clyde Ware
CAST: Martin Sheen, Davey Davison, Elaine Giftos
(north central West Virginia)
1971, FOOLS' PARADE, Columbia Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Andrew V. McLaglen
CAST: James Stewart, George Kennedy, Anne Baxter
(Moundsville; Marshall County)
1969, THE RAIN PEOPLE, American Zoetrope and Warner Bros.
DIRECTED BY: Francis Ford Coppola
CAST: James Caan, Robert Duvall, Shirley Knight
(Clarksburg; Harrison County)
1968, TEEN-AGE STRANGLER, Ajay Film Company
DIRECTED BY: Ben Parker
CAST: Bill Bloom, John Ensign, Rick Harris, Stacy Smith, Jim Asp, Mickey Banga, John Humphries
(Huntington; Cabell County)
1955, THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER, MGM
DIRECTED BY: Charles Laughton
CAST: Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish, James Gleason, Peter Graves
(Moundsville; Marshall County)
1929, WEST VIRGINIA, THE STATE BEAUTIFUL
DIRECTED BY: Ottis Rymer Snodgrass
(silent documentary; Gauley Mountain, Huntington, Kenova; Kanawha, Cabell, Wayne Counties)
MOTION PICTURE & TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS USING WEST VIRGINIA AS A STORYLINE
2003, DEAR WENDY, Zentropa Entertainment
DIRECTED BY: Thomas Vinterberg
CAST: Bill Pullman, Jamie Bell, Michael Angarano, Danso Gordon, Novella Nelson, Chris Owen
(fictional drama set in small coal mining of WV)
2002, THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES, Sony Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Mark Pellington
CAST: Richard Gere, Debra Messing, Will Patton
(set in the town of Point Pleasant, Mason County, and based on accounts of strange events with ties to a moth-like creature)
(for more info, visit www.pointpleasantwv.org or http://www.wvghosts.com/mothman/)
2001, A BEAUTIFUL MIND, Universal Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Ron Howard
CAST: Russell Crowe, Jennifer Connelly, Ed Harris, Christopher Plummer
(fact-based account on WV native John Nash, Jr., recipient of 1994 Nobel Peace Price and native of Bluefield, WV)
(for more info, visit www.mccvb.com)
1999, OCTOBER SKY, Universal Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Joe Johnston
CAST: Jake Gyllenhaal, Chris Cooper, Laura Dern, Chris Owen
(fact-based account on WV native and author Homer Hickam's book "Rocket Boys")
1998, PATCH ADAMS, Universal Pictures
DIRECTED BY: Tom Shadyac
CAST: Robin Williams, Daniel London, Monica Potter, Philip Seymour Hoffman
(fact-based account on Dr. Hunter "Patch" Adams, a holistic doctor who founded Gesundheit! Institute in Hillsboro, WV)
1987, MATEWAN, Artisan Entertainment
DIRECTED BY: John Sayles
CAST: Chris Cooper, James Earl Jones, Mary McDonnell, Will Oldham, David Strathairn
(fictional story of coal mining and union busting in West Virginia)
(filmed entirely in Thurmond, New River Gorge regions; Fayette County, WV)
1986, ACT OF VENGEANCE, Warner Bros.
DIRECTED BY: John Mackenzie
CAST: Charles Bronson, Ellen Burstyn
(fact-based account on the corruption that occurred during the United Mine Workers 1969 presidential elections)
1986, A KILLING AFFAIR, Hemdale Film Corporation
DIRECTED BY: David Saperstein
CAST: Peter Weller, Kathy Baker, John Glover, Bill Smitrovich
(fictional drama)
1973-74, HAWKINS, CBS-TV series
DIRECTED BY: Jeff Corey
CAST: James Stewart, Strother Martin
(main character is attorney based in West Virginia)
1947, THE MILLERSON CASE, Columbia Pictures
DIRECTED BY: George Archainbaud
CAST: Warner Baxter , Nancy Saunders, Clem Bevans, Griff Barnett
(fictional drama)
FAMOUS WEST VIRGINIANS IN THE MOTION PICTURE & TELEVISION INDUSTRIES
(The listing below includes individuals who were born in West Virginia, grew up and spent a large amount of time in West Virginia, or currently reside in West Virginia. The listing does not identify individuals who are deceased.)
Sara Alexander, Wheeling, Ohio County (silent film actress)
Tony Anthony, Clarksburg, Harrison County (motion picture producer and actor)
Jodi Applegate, Wheeling, Ohio County (broadcast journalist)
Karen Austin, Welch, McDowell County (television actress)
Walter "Piggy" Barnes, Parkersburg, Wood County (television actor)
Charlie Barnett, Bluefield, Mercer County (motion picture and television actor)
Robert V. Barron, Charleston, Kanawha County (director, actor, screenwriter)
Lina Basquette, Wheeling, Ohio County (silent film actress)
John Bradford (real name, Charles Coleman, Jr.), Pratt, Kanawha County (motion picture actor)
Jean Carson, Charleston, Kanawha County (television actress)
Bernie Casey, Wyco, Wyoming County (motion picture and television actor, director, producer)
Ted Cassidy, Philippi, Barbour County (television actor)
John Corbett, Wheeling, Ohio County (motion picture and television actor)
Dagmar (real name, Virginia Ruth Egnor), Huntington, Cabell County (television actress)
Bob Denver, Princeton, Mercer County (television actor)
Joyce DeWitt, Wheeling, Ohio County (television actress)
Paul Dooley, Parkersburg, Wood County (motion picture and television actor)
Brad Dourif, Huntington, Cabell County (motion picture and television actor)
Joanne Dru, Logan, Logan County (motion picture actress)
Conchata Ferrell, Charleston, Kanawha County (motion picture and television actress)
Jennifer Garner, Charleston, Kanawha County (motion picture and television actress)
Steve Harvey, Welch, McDowell County (comedian and television actor)
Lawrence Kasdan, Morgantown, Monongalia County (motion picture director and screenwriter)
Lesli Kay, Charleston, Kanawha County (television actress)
Don Knotts, Morgantown, Monongalia County (motion picture and television actor)
Pare Lorentz, Clarksburg, Harrison County (motion picture director and producer)
Ann Magnuson, Charleston, Kanawha County (motion picture and television actress)
Patrick Markey (motion picture producer)
Peter Marshall, Huntington, Cabell County (television game show host)
Kathy Mattea, Cross Lanes, Kanawha County (musician and motion picture and television actress)
Russ McCubbin, Charleston, Kanawha County (motion picture and television actor)
Devon Odessa, Parkersburg, Wood County (television actress)
Johnny Olson, Lewisburg, Greenbrier County (television game show announcer)
Ed Rabel, St. Albans, Kanawha County (television news correspondent)
Allie Raye, Parkersburg, Wood County (producer, screenwriter, motion picture and television actress)
Soupy Sales, Huntington, Cabell County (comedian and motion picture and television actor)
Chris Sarandon, Beckley, Raleigh County (motion picture actor)
David Selby, Morgantown, Monongalia County (motion picture and television actor)
Robert Tinnell, Fairmont, Marion County (motion picture director)
Sam Trammell, Charleston, Kanawha County (motion picture and theater actor)
Clyde Ware, West Union, Doddridge County (motion picture director and screenwriter)
