Summary

• The majority of Road House (1984) was filmed in the Dominican Republic.
• The Seven Mile Bridge in Marathon, Florida is also featured in the film.
• Jake Gyllenhaal traveled to Las Vegas for the UFC match scene in Road House (2024).

The 2024 film Road House serves as a reimagining of the 1989 movie of the same name starring Patrick Swayze, and while the original was based in Missouri, the Jake Gyllenhaal-led remake moved the story (and production) to the tropics. The Amazon Prime Video film, directed by Doug Liman and written by Anthony Bagarozzi and Chuck Mondry, featured the same basic plot as its predecessor — a troubled man haunted by his past accepts a job as a bouncer at a rowdy establishment. However, Road House (2024) is able to separate itself from the original in many ways, including its location.

Like the 1989 movie, Road House (2024) features a dynamic cast, including Gyllenhaal as Elwood Dalton, Daniela Melchior as Ellie, Billy Magnussen as Ben Brandt, Jessica Williams as Frankie, Lukas Gage as Billy, and Post Malone as Carter. Additionally, a couple of real-life UFC fighters appear in Road House (2024) on Amazon Prime Video — Conor McGregor as Knox and Jay Hieron as Jax "Jetway" Harris. Most of these actors congregated in one specific (and scenic) spot during the production process and shot all their scenes there, making principal photography on the movie easier.

Dominican Republic

"99 percent" of Road House was filmed in the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic served as the central hub for Road House's production, and the cast and crew of the 2024 action film mostly stayed on location in the picturesque country during the filming process. According to The Independent, film commissioner Chad Newman explained how many of the movie's scenes were captured in the Dominican Republic. Newman said, "Ninety-nine percent of the movie is filmed in the DR." Cities in the Dominican Republic, like Santo Domingo and Punta Cana, doubled as the Florida Keys for the sake of the story in Road House (2024).

Filming began on August 23, 2022, in the Dominican Republic and wrapped in November of the same year (aside from the UFC scene, which was shot in March 2023).

In the action film, the Road House is said to be located in Glass Keys, a town part of the Florida Keys that is just south of Marathon, Florida. However, Glass Keys is a fictional place that the writers of Road House (2024) made up and does not exist in real life. Of course, the Florida Keys are real, but the production team decided to base principal photography in the Dominican Republic instead of Florida's archipelago. All the scenes at the Road House, Charlie and Stephen's bookstore, by the water, and even Road House's post-credits scene were shot in the Dominican Republic.

Marathon, Florida

The Seven Mile Bridge

The famous Seven Mile Bridge is seen towards the beginning of Road House (2024) when Jake Gyllenhaal's Elwood Dalton hops on a Greyhound bus to the fictional town of Glass Keys. He accepts the job offer from Jessica Williams' Frankie to work as a bouncer at the Road House, but by the end of Road House, Dalton gets back on a bus and leaves Glass Keys. While Gyllenhaal did not actually film the bus scenes on the Seven Mile Bridge, the production crew did travel to Marathon, Florida, to capture aerial shots of the road that connects the Florida Keys.

Jake Gyllenhaal was the only main cast member to travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, to capture pivotal scenes from the Amazon Prime Video action film.

Las Vegas, Nevada

Dalton's UFC match

One of the reasons why Road House (2024) received positive reviews was its locations, from the scenic beaches of the Dominican Republic to the intense nature of an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) match in a Las Vegas arena. Jake Gyllenhaal was the only main cast member to travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, to capture pivotal scenes from the Amazon Prime Video action film. Gyllenhaal and the crew filmed Elwood Dalton's walkout and his fight against Jax "Jetway" Harris, played by former UFC fighter Jay Hieron, in Las Vegas for the flashback sequences in Road House (2024).

Road House and Road House (2024) are available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.

The one-day shoot occurred following the UFC 285 event at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on March 202​​​​​​3. Gyllenhaal and Hieron performed the fight scenes in front of a real crowd of fans who were in attendance for UFC 285. It was undoubtedly a difficult shoot, but the production crew managed to obtain all the footage they needed for the 2024 action movie. Aside from Hieron's cameo, UFC president Dana White, octagon announcer Bruce Buffer, and play-by-play announcer Jon Anik also appeared in Road House (2024) during the Las Vegas scenes.

Source: The Independent