Sci-Fi On Location: Real-World Settings from Your Favorite Films

10. Monument Valley, USA – Martian Realism in 2001: A Space Odyssey

Monument Valley, straddling the Arizona-Utah border, is more than a classic Western backdrop—it’s a cinematic icon whose alien beauty has inspired countless science fiction landscapes. While 2001: A Space Odyssey filmed much of its alien imagery in studios, the austere grandeur of Monument Valley heavily influenced its early-Earth opening scenes and the feel of later Martian-inspired terrains in sci-fi cinema. Towering sandstone buttes, deep crimson plateaus, and vast, open skies evoke a sense of timelessness and solitude that mirrors humanity’s place in the cosmos. Standing in Monument Valley’s windswept silence, you can easily imagine astronauts walking across its rust-colored plains. The landscape’s surreal geology, sculpted by millions of years of erosion, often feels more Martian than Earthly. For film lovers and dreamers alike, a visit here offers more than breathtaking views—it’s a pilgrimage to a place where cinematic history and planetary imagination intersect.