Durango has in its history more than 150 feature films filmed throughout its territory, in hundreds of locations among which stands out without a doubt Villa del Oeste.
This theme park, which has been the scene of dozens of films, was built in the sixties.
The traditional landscapes of the old west are part of the natural aesthetics of the state of Durango and since the 1950s the town have served as location to shoot more than 150 films. Dusty streets where, cowboys, canteens, sheriffs, cancán dancers abound: scenes from a large number of western films that saw the legendary John Wayne pass.
It all started when a short film called Un Tren Arriendo a Durango was filmed in 1898, then a director named Raul Wash asked the revolutionary Francisco Villa to act in a film and used Durango as a location, among other states.
Later, especially in the 60’s, directors such as John Houston, Raoul Walsh, Chano Urueta, Raul de Anda, George Sherman and Sam Peckinpah filmed in the town. In 1971 the first big production called “Hate in the Prairies” was filmed with Sidney Portier and Harry Belafonte.
As a feature film, the first to film was The Law of the Brave, in 1955, starring American actor Robert Wagner. The most recent, in 2004 Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek filmed Las Bandidas.
