Best of the City 2025:
Best Star Turns
From an eponymous dramedy this past spring spotlighting local landmarks like the Tower Bridge and Gunther's Ice Cream, to fall's eagerly anticipated Paul Thomas Anderson feature One Battle After Another that filmed scenes in downtown, Sacramento is seeing its name in lights.
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
From Sacramento State alum Ryan Coogler penning and helming this year’s Sinners, which became the highest-grossing original horror movie of all time, to native daughter Greta Gerwig getting tapped to write and direct at least two cinematic adaptations of The Chronicles of Narnia, Sacramento is having quite the Hollywood moment. Not to mention, we saw our city’s name up in lights this past spring in the dramedy Sacramento, which was partially filmed here and features local landmarks like Gunther’s Ice Cream and the Tower Bridge (pictured above, with actors Michael Cera and Michael Angarano crossing the span). Then in June came Pixar’s Elio, co-directed and conceived by Grass Valley’s Adrian Molina, who co-wrote and co-directed Coco and is working on its sequel. Next up is September’s One Battle After Another, the eagerly anticipated film by Paul Thomas Anderson starring Leonardo DiCaprio, whose shoots took over the streets of downtown Sacramento last year. Is this the start of a Sactown invasion of Tinseltown? Let’s hope so, because Mr. DeMille, we’re definitely ready for our close-up.
READ MORE: Pick up our Fall Issue for the full Best of the City 2025
