Real Steel Filming Locations

Diksha Sundriyal of Real Steel Filming Locations Diksha Sundriyal
Updated August 5, 2022

On the surface, ‘Real Steel’ looks like a sports drama with a sci-fi twist to it, but at its heart, it is the story about a father-son duo. It begins with Charlie Kenton, an ex-boxer who is struggling to make money in the business of robot fighting. He is in a lot of debt and every move that he makes turns things worse for him. In between this destitution, he is given the responsibility of taking care of his estranged son, Max, whose mother has recently died. Charlie doesn’t want to take Max, but he finds a way to turn this in an opportunity to make some money. The film focuses on their relationship as they travel across the state to indulge in robot fights and make some money with the newly discovered Atom. If you want to know where the movie has been filmed, here’s the answer.

Where is Real Steel filmed?

The story of ‘Real Steel’ mostly takes place in Texas, but the filming took place entirely in Michigan, with most scenes shot in Detroit. Director Shawn Levy wanted a setting that would allow an old-fashioned touch to the story, blending the near-futuristic elements with the familiarity of the scenery, which would underline the theme of the father-son relationship.

Detroit, Michigan

The film begins with Charlie losing his first robot in a bullfight. These scenes were filmed in a local farmland where a set was built from scratch. For other robot fights, however, the movie found well-known locations. The second fight, where Noisy Boy goes against Midas at Crash Palace, was filmed at the old Ford Model T Automobile Plant. Atom’s first fight against Metro at the Zoo, where Max wins two thousand dollars and convinces Charlie that Atom is worth counting on, was filmed at Belle Isle Nature Zoo on the central avenue on Belle Isle. In another fight, where Max introduces their signature entrance move, the production took to the Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Harrison Township. The fight against Twin Cities at the Spectrum’s arena, where Atom proves himself a strong opponent and eventually challenges Zeus to a fight, took place at the Cobo Arena, next to the Cobo Center on 301 Civic Center Drive. The lobby scenes, where the Kenton father-son duo prepares for the fight and have a surprising meeting with Ferra Lemkova, were filmed at the GM Renaissance Center.

Additionally, the crew was also spotted filming at Oxford, Hartland, and Holly. One of the scenes features the Parkway Motel in Davisburg, where Max reconfigures Atom and mixes his shadow feature with the voice recognition feature of Noisy Boy. The courthouse scenes where Charlie signs over Max’s custody to Marvin and Debra were filmed at Ingham County Courthouse in Mason. The scenes in Tallet’s Gym, where Charlie, Max, and Bailey fix robots, were filmed at the Detroit Fire Department headquarters on 250 West Larned Street at Washington Boulevard. Some scenes were also filmed at Yankee Air Museum in Belleville, the Russell Industrial Center, and Leslie Michigan Railroad Depot.

Read More: Best Robot Movies of All Time

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