Where was One Battle After Another filmed? Complete guide to all filming locations and other production details

One Battle After Another is an upcoming 2025 American epic dark comedy action thriller film directed, written, and produced by Paul Thomas Anderson. Based on Thomas Pynchon's 1990 novel Vineland, the film is about a former revolutionary who attempts to rescue his daughter from a dominant military officer.

The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, Teyana Taylor, and Chase Infiniti. It was released in Los Angeles on September 8, 2025, and later opened in the U.S. by Warner Bros. Pictures on September 26.

Aside from its story and cast, One Battle After Another has gained notice for its enormous budget and scope. With production budgets reported to range from 130 million to 175 million, it is Anderson's most expensive film to date as per Variety on Aug 1, 2025.

One Battle After Another was filmed across multiple U.S. locations, including Humboldt County (Arcata, Cutten, Eureka, Trinidad), Sacramento, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Borrego Springs, El Paso (Texas), San Diego, the Westgate Hotel, and Otay Mesa near the Mexico–U.S. border.

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Filming and production details of One Battle After Another explored

One Battle After Another started shooting in California on January 22, 2024, with the title BC Project. Filming first went through Humboldt County, filming in towns like Arcata, Cutten, Eureka, and Trinidad over 11 days of shooting. The initial locations gave the rural backdrops, which help to anchor the story in a credible American location.

In February 2024, it moved to Sacramento, and some of the main scenes were shot in the Sacramento County Administration Building and Sacramento County Courthouse. But this phase of production turned into a controversy when a homeless camp was cleared to pave the way for the crew.

By the end of May 2024, cast and crew were shooting in Southern California's Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and Borrego Springs, where they enjoyed dramatic desert landscapes appropriate to the tone of the film.

In June 2024, filming took place in El Paso, Texas, where cameras captured borderland landscapes integral to the story. Filming also occurred in San Diego, at the Westgate Hotel, and in Otay Mesa along the Mexico–U.S. border.

The massive budget of the project was initially reported at $115 million back on February 21, 2024. Variety ultimately reported the actual cost as being $175 million, although Warner Bros. insisted on it being $130 million as per a report by Variety on Aug 1, 2025.

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What happens in One Battle After Another and who stars in it?

One Battle After Another (Image Via Warner Bros.)

The story of One Battle After Another revolves around Pat Calhoun, alias Bob Ferguson, acted by Leonardo DiCaprio. The former revolutionary combatant, Pat, now leads a peaceful life in exile with his daughter Willa. Their tenuous peace is broken by Col. Steven J. Lockjaw, played by Sean Penn.

Lockjaw is a rogue military man with personal links to Pat's troubled history, and he becomes the pivotal menace as the movie progresses.

While trying to guard Willa, played by Chase Infiniti, Pat is pulled back into an ugly life of political factions, betrayals, and survival. With them is Perfidia Beverly Hills, played by Teyana Taylor, Willa's mother and Pat's former lover, who left the family years ago.

Benicio del Toro plays the part of Sergio St. Carlos, a well-respected community leader and Willa's mentor, and Regina Hall plays Deandra, one of Pat's comrades from the revolutionaries.

The supporting cast is not limited to the core family, and Alana Haim, Wood Harris, Shayna McHayle, Tony Goldwyn, Jena Malone, and others are part of it.

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The movie was released in theatres on September 26, 2025.