Tamal Kundu
Directed by McG (‘The Babysitter‘), spy action-adventure ‘3 Days to Kill tells the story of CIA agent Ethan Renner (Kevin Costner), who learns that he has terminal brain cancer and a few months to live. With the agency retiring him, he decides to spend the time he has left with his estranged wife Christine (Connie Nielsen) and daughter Zooey (Hailee Steinfeld). However, Vivi Delay (Amber Heard), an elite CIA assassin, offers him a deal that he can’t refuse.
Delay tells Ethan that if he kills Wolf, an illegal arms dealer and his last target before retirement, she will give him an experimental drug that can potentially extend his life. Having no other viable choice, Ethan agrees to the terms. The film is set in Serbia and France. If you are wondering if the movie was shot on location or elsewhere, here is everything we know.
3 Days to Kill Filming Locations
McG and his Director of Photography Thierry Arbogast filmed ‘3 Days to Kill’ on location in and around Belgrade, Serbia, and Paris, France. Principal Photography began on December 10, 2012, and concluded on March 29, 2013.
Belgrade, Serbia
Hotel Jugoslavija, located at Bulevar Nikole Tesle 3, Belgrade, Serbia, was used to film the opening scenes of the movie, wherein Ethan and his team have set up a trap for the Albino (Tómas Lemarquis), the second-in-command in Wolf’s operation.
Kalemegdan Park served as the filming location for the scenes wherein the mission starts falling apart when The Albino recognizes one of the CIA operatives. He causes a massive explosion at Hotel Jugoslavija and tries to escape. Ethan gives chase and almost captures The Albino, but his body starts shutting down. He shoots the Albino in the leg, but he manages to get away.
Paris, France
22 Rue Geoffroy l’Asnier, Paris 4, in Paris, is depicted as Ethan’s apartment. After returning home for the first time in years, he discovers that a family of squatters has occupied his apartment. This used to be a privately owned property. In 1926, the sculpted wooden doors of the mansion were named a historical monument.
In the film, Petit Palais, located at Avenue Winston Churchill, Paris 8, serves as Christine’s workplace. She receives Ethan’s phone call on the steps of this famous art museum.
15 Rue de l’Abreuvoir, Paris 18, served as Christine and Zooey’s home. The audience first sees the inside of this lavish house when Christine takes Ethan there, after finding out about his diagnosis.
Zooey is supposed to be attending Cité Universitaire Internationale, located at 19 Boulevard Jourdan, Paris 14. It’s where Ethan and Christine meet her. In real life, the building is not used for classes. Instead, it houses a number of facilities, including a swimming pool.
Ethan and Vivi have their first meeting at Rue des Barres. They later walk to the corner of Rue Du Pont Louis-Philippe and Rue Des Barres. The market shown in these scenes was part of the set, built specifically for the movie.
Located at Rive Gauche, Pont Alexandre III, right under the arches of the bridge, Faust is one of the most famous nightclubs in Paris. Ethan finds Zooey here and saves her from three assailants.
The scenes in which Ethan teaches Zooey how to ride a bicycle were shot at the bottom of the Sacre-Coeur steps or Square Louise-Michel, Place Saint-Pierre, Paris 18.
Ethan follows The Albino’s accountant into Hôtel George V, located at 31 Avenue George V, Paris 8. He is about to confront one of the accountant’s guards when Zooey calls him.
Several scenes involving the carousel, both featuring a younger and the current versions of Zooey, were filmed at the long-running amusement park, Jardin d’Acclimatation, located at Bois de Boulogne, Paris 16.
The supermarket scene takes place at 76 Rue Lecourbe, Paris 15. This is also where Ethan fights and neutralizes a hired assassin.
The Albino walks out of the Grand Hotel Paris Intercontinental, located at 2 Rue Scribe, just 100 feet from the Opéra Garnier and Opera Metro Station, and gets into a car with the Wolf and Mitat (Marc Andréoni).
After the electrifying car chase, Ethan follows the Wolf into the Ségur metro station at Paris 7.
Seine-Maritime, France
The closing scenes of ‘3 Days to Kill’ were filmed at the picturesque Vattetot-sur-Mer, Seine-Maritime, in the Normandy region in northern France. In them, Ethan is shown to have made it to Christmas and spending the holiday with his family.
Other Locations in France
The production team also filmed scenes in locations such as Angle Rue des Barres et Rue de l’Hôtel de Ville, Paris 4; Place Dalida, Paris 18; Hotel Regence – 2 Villa de Guelma, Paris 18; Place de la Concorde, Paris 8; Palais de Chaillot, Paris 16; Rue de Castiglione, Paris 1; The Westin Paris Vendôme – 3 Rue De Castiglione, Paris 1; Cour Carrée, Musée du Louvre, Paris 1; Rue de l’Abreuvoir, Paris 18; and Orly Airport, Orly, Val-de-Marne.
Many of the interior shots of the Kevin Costner-starrer action thriller were filmed at Studios de Paris, La Cité du Cinéma, Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis.
Read More: Is 3 Days to Kill a True Story?
