This is a list of foreign films shot in Thailand. See also: List of Thai films Numerous foreign films have been shot in Thailand, with the kingdom either playing itself or standing in for a neighboring country, such as Vietnam or Cambodia.
The availability of exotic jungle and beach settings, relatively low production costs, and a mature domestic film industry that provides experienced crew members have made Thailand an attractive location for many international productions.
Notable films shot in Thailand include The Big Boss, The Man with the Golden Gun, and The Beach. The country has also served as a stand-in setting for Vietnam War-era films such as The Deer Hunter; Good Morning, Vietnam; Casualties of War; and The Killing Fields.
While foreign productions provide valuable jobs for local crews and help promote Thailand as a global tourist destination, they have also drawn criticism for damaging the natural environment. High-profile shoots for films like The Man with the Golden Gun and The Beach have sparked long-term ecological concerns due to physical location alterations and the subsequent influx of film-driven tourism.
History
Hollywood and foreign productions have played an important role in the development of Thailand's film industry. One of the first feature films made in Thailand, 1923's Miss Suwanna of Siam, was a Hollywood co-production made with the royal assistance of King Vajiravudh. He granted the production free use of his 52 automobiles, 600 horses, the Royal Thai Navy, the Grand Palace, railways, rice mills, rice fields, coconut groves, canals, and elephants.
Shortly after, the 1927 silent documentary Chang: A Drama of the Wilderness, directed by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, was also filmed in the country.
Over the decades, Thailand has remained a popular location for Western cinema. The Bollywood film industry has also frequently chosen the country for its productions, a trend that took off following the massive success of the 2000 hit Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai.
Economic impact and incentives Foreign productions provide work for local film crews and extras, including the Royal Thai Army, while also promoting the country as a tourist destination. Due to this economic impact, agencies such as the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and the Thailand Film Office actively recruit international production companies.
At the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, Thailand introduced a cash rebate policy that officially took effect in January 2017. The program grants a 15% tax rebate for foreign film productions that spend more than 50 million baht. The rebate increases by 2% for films that promote Thai tourism, and an additional 3% if the production hires key Thai personnel on set. Filmed advertisements are not eligible for the program.
Following the implementation of these incentives, 714 foreign productions—including documentaries, television dramas, series, advertisements, and feature films—were shot in Thailand in 2018. During the first six months of 2019, 410 foreign productions were filmed in the country, which the TAT reported contributed 3.5 billion baht to the local economy.
Since 2024, a 30% uncapped cash rebate has spurred a surge in major productions, including Alien: Earth and Jurassic World Rebirth. Media-driven tourism, or "set-jetting," has further boosted the economy; The White Lotus generated $36.5 million in local spending and sparked a 300% increase in travel bookings to Thailand.
Environmental controversies
Filmmakers have occasionally faced criticism for damaging the Thai environment during production. The island used to depict the villain's hideout in The Man with the Golden Gun became a major draw for tourism operators in Phuket's Phang Nga Bay. Now commonly known as "James Bond Island," the location faces long-term concerns over ecological sustainability and crowding.
Environmentalists also heavily protested the filming of the 2000 film The Beach, arguing that the production crew's physical alterations to Maya Bay on Ko Phi Phi Le caused severe ecological damage.
List of foreign films shot in Thailand 1920s–1970s Nangsao Suwan (Suvarna of Siam) (1922-US): Directed by Henry MacRae. A love story with a Thai cast. The film has been lost; only a few stills survive. Chang: A Drama of the Wilderness (1927-US) – Directors Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack were assisted by Prince Yugala Dighambara in the production of their silent docudrama about a family of subsistence farmers living in the jungle, battling elephants, tigers and other animals. Among the cast is a gibbon named Bimbo. A Handful of Rice (1940-Sweden): Portrays Thailand's rural life in docudrama form. Around the World in Eighty Days (1956): Director Michael Todd was able to borrow one of the royal barges of King Bhumibol Adulyadej when the production was in Bangkok. Yutthana Siriporn (1963-Germany): Depicts urban life in Bangkok in the early 1960s and examines a Buddhist rite. The Ugly American (1963-US): Thai statesman Kukrit Pramoj appeared on screen with Marlon Brando, portraying the prime minister of the fictional Southeast Asian country of Sarkhan. He was later elected Prime Minister of Thailand, serving in office from 1975 to 1976. Shadow of Evil (Banco à Bangkok pour OSS 117) (1964-FR): Secret Agent OSS 117, Colonel Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath (Kerwin Mathews) is sent to Thailand following the murder of OSS agent Christopher Lemmon. The Big Boss (1971): Chinese American martial artist and Jeet Kune Do founder Bruce Lee portrays Cheng Chao-An, a young fighter from Guangdong who emigrates to Thailand to be with his expatriate family and finds a job working in an ice factory; it soon turns out that the factory is a disguised drug operation, and Cheng soon finds himself having to fight for his life. After the original 1971 premiere, Hong Kong censors demanded that some of the footage be trimmed, including graphic violence, and an entire sequence in which Cheng visits a whorehouse and has sex with a Thai prostitute (featuring the only nude scene in Lee's career). The missing footage is rumoured to still exist. Duel of Fists (1971): David Chiang travels to Bangkok looking for his long-lost brother (Ti Lung), who's a muay Thai boxer in this Shaw Brothers Studio film by Chang Cheh. Pawana Chanachit co-starred as a love interest for Chiang's character. Locations include the Dusit Thani Hotel on Rama IV Road, long before overpass bridges and the Bangkok Skytrain were built, as well as the Siam Intercontinental, since razed to make way for Siam Paragon. Ulagam Sutrum Valiban (1973): Produced and directed by MGR, a Tamil movie released in 1973 has Bangkok and the Dusit Thani Hotel. Emmanuelle (1974): Filmed around Bangkok. The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) – Filmed around Bangkok and Phang Nga Bay near Phuket. Bond attended a boxing match at Ratchadamnoen Boxing Stadium in Pom Prap Sattru Phai District. One of the islands seen in the film is known as Nail Island. It is the hideout of Scaramanga (Christopher Lee) and is now known as "James Bond Island". The Deer Hunter (1978): The Russian roulette bar scene was shot in Patpong, while the POW camp was in Sai Yok, Kanchanaburi Province.
1980s Uncommon Valor (1983): Set in Laos but filmed partly in Bangkok. Lao scenery was filmed in Hawaii. The Killing Fields (1984-US): Locations in Hua Hin and Phuket stood in for Khmer Rouge-era Cambodia. Actor Spalding Gray recounts the film's shoot in his monologue, Swimming to Cambodia. Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985-US): Sylvester Stallone's super soldier goes to Vietnam (actually Thailand) looking for his POW buddies. Followed by Rambo III, set in Afghanistan, but partially shot in Thailand. Good Morning, Vietnam (1987-US): Thai actress Jintara Sukapat portrayed the love interest for Robin Williams' character. Filmed on location in Bangkok, standing in for pre-1975 Saigon. Off Limits (1988): Christopher Crowe's Vietnam War crime thriller featured Willem Dafoe and Gregory Hines. The film is also known as Saigon. Casualties of War (1989-US): Brian De Palma's Vietnam War saga was filmed around Phuket and Kanchanaburi. Kickboxer (1989): Jean-Claude Van Damme movie about a Westerner who learns muay Thai.
1990s Air America (1990): Mae Hong Son Province in northern Thailand stands in for Secret War-era Laos. The film later attracted tourism to the region and was featured on the cover of Conde Nast Traveller in May 1993. Turtle Beach (1992) Heaven & Earth (1993-US): Oliver Stone's Vietnam War-era drama was made in Thailand. Surf Ninjas (1993-US) Operation Dumbo Drop (1995-US): Walt Disney Pictures' Vietnam War comedy-drama features Thai elephants. Cutthroat Island (1995): Renny Harlin's swashbuckler was filmed on location in Maya Bay, which would later be used for The Beach. Mortal Kombat Annihilation (1997): Tony Jaa worked as a stunt double and went on to become a major Thai action star. Filming was in historic old Ayutthaya, where a minor stir was caused when scantily clad foreign women were filmed dancing on top of some sacred ruins. Mortal Kombat (1995) also was made in Thailand, around Sukhothai historical park. The opening and closing scenes in Mortal Kombat are also filmed in Ayutthaya. Tomorrow Never Dies (1997): Another Bond film and another Bond. Michelle Yeoh co-stars, as Bangkok stands in for Ho Chi Minh City. Scaramanga's island is seen, as Phang Nga Bay substitutes for Halong Bay, Vietnam. Production crew originally were destined to film in Vietnam but were denied entry. Thailand was chosen as an alternate location. A Bright Shining Lie (1998) Brokedown Palace (1999): Clair Danes and Kate Beckinsale are arrested for smuggling while visiting Thailand. It was partly shot in Bangkok and the Bangkok airport. Bangkok Dangerous (1999): Directed by Oxide and Danny Pang. A Thai hit-man story by Hong Kong directors.
2000–2003 The Beach (2000-US): Environmentalists protested the film because the production crew altered the beach of Ko Phi Phi Leh. A 2006 court ruling held that 20th Century Fox was among the parties responsible for damages.The Nation, 1 December 2006. Filming 'damaged beach' (retrieved on 3 December 2006).
In the Mood for Love (2000): Wong Kar-wai's love story starring Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu Wai is set in 1960s Hong Kong, but exterior scenes were filmed in Bangkok. Butterfly Man (2002): About a British tourist and a Thai masseuse. Directed by Kaprice Kea. City of Ghosts (2002): Matt Dillon's noirish thriller was set in Cambodia and mostly filmed there, but some scenes were shot in Thailand, and many of the crew were Thai people. The Medallion (2003): Jackie Chan's action picture was filmed in Thailand under the working title, Highbinders. Belly of the Beast (2003): Steven Seagal portrays a former CIA agent who searches in Thailand for his kidnapped daughter. Co-stars Thai actors Sarah Malakul, Pongpat Wachirabanjong, and Chakrit Yamnam.Phoborisut, Penchan (30 April 2003) "Seagal brings Hollywood to Thailand" , Bangkok Post (retrieved via Steven-Seagal.net, 10 August 2006).
2004 2046: Wong Kar-wai's follow-up to In the Mood for Love was filmed partially in Bangkok, and the film underwent post-production processing at Bangkok's Kantana Group labs, where the director made last-minute edits to the film before delivering it late to the 2004 Cannes Film Festival. Two Brothers: This family-friendly story about two tigers had some scenes made in Samut Prakan Province, at a tourist site called Mueang Boran (Ancient City), which has scaled-down replicas of many of Thailand's important structures. The tigers used in the film were from the Si Racha Tiger Zoo near Pattaya. The film was set in neighboring Cambodia, and many locations were used there was well.