“Arkansas doesn’t exist to half the people in Hollywood, to be honest,” says Luka Duszota, a freelance production assistant and junior at Conway High School. “Most celebrities couldn’t find Arkansas on a map. Kris Jenner? No way. Kylie Jenner? No way. Ariana Grande? Definitely not.” Many seem to believe that Arkansas doesn’t exist in the eye of Hollywood and whenever it does it’s represented poorly. To most students, Hollywood represents Arkansas through stories about, “sasquatch or like bigfoot hunting” (-Luka Duszota) or “really negative…like about racism” (-Kendall Watson, Junior). Although it’s not all bad and for films to be shot in Arkansas is a much more common occurrence than people think. Arkansas has been the home to big studio productions since the late 1920’s all the way up to today. 

The first film to be shot in Arkansas was a 1929 film titled Hallelujah. It was one of the industry’s first “talkies” and took place primarily in Memphis. The film has a climactic chase scene towards the end that was shot in West Memphis, Arkansas. Next is, A Face In The Crowd, which is a 1959 film based on the short story “Your Arkansas Traveler” by Budd Schulberg. The film was shot in Piggott, Arkansas, and was the debut role of acting legend Andy Griffith. 

Throughout the seventies, several crime and horror films were shot in Arkansas. In 1970, critically acclaimed director Roger Corman shot his low-budget film Bloody Mama which starred 26-year-old Robert De Niro. The film was shot in the Ozark Mountains and Little Rock area. Then in 1972, Corman returned to Arkansas and acted as a producer on Martin Scorsese’s second film Boxcar Bertha and the film was shot in Camden, Arkansas. After that, in 1973, the film White Lightning was shot in Tucker, Arkansas. The film starred Burt Reynolds as the titular White Lightning. Although, the biggest film of this time to be shot in Arkansas was 1977’s The Town That Dreaded Sundown which recounted the 1946 string of murderers in Texarkana. The film and its 2014 remake were both shot on location in Texarkana as well as in Garland, Arkansas. 

Between The Town That Dreaded Sundown and this next film there were a few other films to be shot in Arkansas, but none as big as the 1983 film,  A Soldier’s Story. The film stars Howard E. Rollins Jr. and Denzel Washington as soldiers in a Louisiana military base. Despite it taking place farther south, the film was shot in Clarendon, White River, Little Rock, and primarily Fort Smith. The film would go on to be nominated for three academy awards, including Best Picture, and would win for Best Screenplay. Later in the eighties, two movies of note would film in Arkansas. Firstly, Biloxi Blues, was a coming-of-age Bootcamp comedy that followed Ferris Bueller himself, Matthew Brodrick, as he went through military training under the eye of Christopher Walken as a drill sergeant. It was shot at Fort Chaffee, near Fort Smith, and Van Buren. That same year, Great Balls of Fire starring Dennis Quaid and Winona Ryder was filmed in West Memphis. The film was another biographical tale about singer/songwriter Jerry Lee Lewis. 

In the 90’s huge studio films, that were not autobiographical dramas, were shot in Arkansas. Firstly in 1992 was The Firm starring Tom Cruise. The film was shot partially in Marion, Arkansas, but was also shot in Memphis, Tennessee where Conway High School’s Mrs. Darcy Caplan had the opportunity of being on set. “I got to meet Tom Cruise, but I didn’t have anything for him to sign. So he pointed to his bodyguard and told me to tell him my name and address so he can send me an autograph. It was a really neat experience.” After The Firm, in 1995 there was Sling Blade starring and directed by Arkansas native Billy Bob Thorton. This film is probably the biggest within the list as it also takes place in Arkansas and was filmed in Benton. Thorton won Best Adapted Screenplay at the 1997 Oscars and was nominated for Best Actor.

In the 2000s there were several films of note to be shot in Arkansas. Firstly, in 2000 Billy Bob Thorton returned alongside Laura Dern, Ben Affleck, Kelly Preston, and Jamie Lee Curtis to film the comedy Daddy and Them. This film, much like Sling Blade, was written and directed by Thorton and was shot in Cabot and Little Rock. Then in 2004, the Johnny Cash biopic starring Joaquin Phoenix, Walk The Line, was shot in Dyess (Cash’s hometown) and Helena. The film would also be nominated for five academy awards. Later in 2006, Arkansas native Joey Lauren Adams who starred in Dazed and Confused, Chasing Amy, and a slew of other popular nineties comedies made her directorial debut with Come Early Morning. The film was shot entirely in Little Rock and North Little Rock as well; it had its world debut in Little Rock a year later. In 2008, writer/director/comedian/actor Sacha Baron Cohen filmed Brüno at a bar in Fort Smith, but the most unique issue with this event is that a riot erupted as what was supposed to be a good ole’ boxing match quickly turned into a homosexual love scene. The audience wasn’t too happy. 

Lastly is the 2012 film Mud starring Matthew McConaughey. The film follows McConaughey as a fugitive on the run in Arkansas and was directed by Jonesboro native, Jeff Nichols. The film was shot in Dumas, DeWitt, Lake Village, Crocketts Bluff, and Stuttgart. It’s the largest production to ever shoot in Arkansas, but would not be the last. The most recent movie to shoot in Arkansas was the 2022 film Chariot, starring Thomas Mann, Rosa Salazar, and John Malkovich. It’s not an anomaly for movies to shoot in Arkansas and it’s been a common occurrence for almost a hundred years with several different movies shooting every decade.