Movies Filmed on the Western Slope Colorado

There's quite a list of movies filmed in western Colorado. Early on was the 1925s Charlie Chaplin flick the Gold Rush. The town of Durango and the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Train are mentioned. Most famous is probably John Wayne's Oscar-winning True Grit,  filmed in Ouray and around Ridgway. Some businesses still market a connection some 50 years later.

1957s Tribute to a Bad Man was filmed just south of Ridgway on Miller Mesa, directed by  Robert Wise (The Sound of Music, West Side Story, and others.) It was James Cagney's last western. Montrose, Telluride, Silverton, Durango, Ouray, Gunnison, and Ridgway for the epic How the West Was Won. It's from 1962 and had a vast cast that included Debbie Reynolds, Gregory Peck, John Wayne, James Stewart, Henry Ford, and many others.

I love watching the 1969 classic, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with Paul Newman and Robert Redford. Silverton, Telluride, and Durango were listed as the filming sites. Montrose was the site of a 1958 film called The Sheepman, starring Glenn Ford. The fun 1991 movie Thelma and Louise had some scenes actually filmed around Grand Junction. Johnny Depp made two films in western Colorado, Arizona Dream was filmed in Gunnison, and the Lone Ranger where Depp plays Tonto was filmed in Creede.

Last but not least Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie did some filming in Glenwood Canyon for Mr. and Mtr. Smith in 2005.

Maybe you've seen a few of these great movies, and if you haven't the next time you watch one, you may recognize some areas on the Western Slope.