Listen, the only thing cooler than a car movie is a car movie with an exceptional chase scene. I mean, that’s the height of entertainment right there! What you’re about to see is our ranking of the top movie chases of all time, from all eras. These are plain and simple the coolest car movie chases that exist in Hollywood, so sit back and enjoy! You’re going to see a combination of the best photos, alongside some insider information on these legendary car chases.
50. Dukes Of Hazzard (2005)
Who can forget this iconic police car chase with ZZ Top and AC/DC blaring in the background? This is one of the few city chase scenes. Many of the other stunt/chase scenes were filmed at an agricultural research station owned by LSU. The wheel-turning, rubber-burning, trouble-brewing Hazzard brothers against the good ‘ol boys of the law will forever remain one of the best and most memorable car chase scenes in Hollywood history. We can’t picture this list without it, so it’s a great one to start out with!
Watching a herd of multi-million dollar super cars in a sort of death race to a dead end road is enough to get any man’s blood pumping. However, many of the cars used in the chase scene were shell cars so they looked like the real thing, but cost way less. For instance, the $4.6 million dollar Koenigsegg super car shell used in the chase scene only cost about $300,000.
Bad guys on bikes and Moneros drive through Croatia chasing Jackie Chan in this car chase movie classic. There is a literal twin turbo button pushed at some point. Yet, the most memorable moment has to be watching Jackie’s concept Mitsubishi perform a dual span jump over two bridges.
This could be referred to as the chase scene that almost didn’t happen. The practice run damaged the crane so severely it was doubtful as to whether or not it could be used afterward. A few repairs and several days later, the 165t Demag AC 395 was able to continue.
Filming a chase scene full of drifters requires a lot of coordination, timing and tires! Toyo donated 4,000 for the film and roughly half were used during production. Professional drift drivers like Rhys Miller were used to create scenes like the one here where Hans ultimately bites the dust!
Those expressionless shotgun blasts out the window during the Terminator chase scene didn’t just happen. it was part of Schwarzenegger’s idea for the character. He spent weeks taking apart guns blindfolded so he could do so expressionless since he told director James Cameron a robot would be doing the killing so he would not have to look at a weapon to load or reload.
Watch, the epic car chase from Cannon Ball Run and its obvious they don’t make Pontiac Firebird police cruisers like they used too. Plus, it wouldn’t matter anyway. The Lamborghini Countach in the opening car chase makes light work of the police cruiser, not to mention the Aston Martin and Ferrari who make appearances in the film as well!
Check out the 1972 Custom Ford 500 leaning into a turn just before sideswiping a bus! Ultimately, the car would be blown up with a bomb intended for Dirty Harry himself. People who restore movie cars have a hard time finding these because most were used and scrapped in favor of period Galaxies and LTD hard tops.
If you want to make an epic car chase, put John Frankenheimer at the helm. Grand Prix (1966) and the French Connection (1975) are considered run ups to one of the most epic car chase movies ever produced, Ronin. All three have Frankenheimer in common, yet only Grand Prix features a race car bursting into flames as it pull in to to make a pit stop!
Who wouldn’t want to careen through the streets of Hamburg Germany in a car chase battling baddies and turning cool car tricks? The roof top to building window crash jump is a classic. However, the parking deck parts of the chase scene were all filmed in London, not the Atlantic Hotel parking deck (which doesn’t even actually have a deck of its own).
Philip D’Antoni rounded out his career by sitting in the director’s chair for this movie and filmed one epic car chase. Blood splatters and bullets fly in a chase scene where Pontiacs battle like gladiators. The ending of the chase (where the car plows into the back of a tractor trailer shearing off the top) was a tribute to Jayne Mansfield who died the exact same way.
Perhaps the only salvation for this film is the car chase involving a military Humvee. Remember, Nicolas Cage was a chemical weapons expert named Stanley Goodspeed, so from the beginning the film needed a boost. Throw in a maniacal Ed Harris loaded with XV gas rockets, a car chase, and Michael Bay , and you have the recipe for a good movie despite Stanley’s name.
Throwing cars off a car transporter always makes for a good chase scene. However, the best part about Bad Boys II might be the continuity issues during this scene. Cars disappear, then reappear, sunroofs open and close and side mirrors get destroyed then magically reappear in tact!
The Vegas strip was brought to life with lights, camera, action, KABOOM! Plus, a LOT of cars were destroyed during the chase scene as the SWAT truck pursues Bourne’s vehicle. When asked how many producer Frank Marshall immediately rattles off 170 (he said he knew the exact number because he had to pay the bill for all of them).
Dodge Neon SRT 4 variants were used in place of Mitsubishi models for many of the vehicles in the chase scene at the request of Craig Lieberman (tech advisor for the film. Walker did a few stunts himself (like the slide at the beginning of the movie). He was a HUGE fan of street racing and was given a lot of creative control over certain parts of the movie.
The chase scene for Hell or High Water was loaded with machine guns, pickups and one heck of a showdown. It’s what happens when a casino robber (Chris Pine) crosses a retired sheriff (Jeff Bridges). And while the ending was a bit ambiguous, the chase scene most definitely was not!
So just before the red AMC jumps this wooden bridge, there is a bit of dialogue. Look for Sheriff J.W. Pepper to say, “What the hell you doing now boy!” When he says that, look into the passenger side window of the red AMC and wave at the reflection of the film crew. Oops!
The “Frankenstein” character car is a 2006 Ford Mustang GT outfitted with a Roush supercharged 5.4L 3V Ford V8 Engine. Furthermore, it has 2 mounted mini-guns capable of shooting 3,000 real bullets per minute. Throw in flamethrowers and napalm and you have one scary chase scene on your hands!
Its a coast to coast race of camaros, ferraris, shelby cobras and more in Gumball. the only rule is there are no rules. As such, expect to see Gary Busey pop his car on two wheels and an L.A. drainage ditch race!
The opening chase scene of Mad Max redefined chase scenes for movies. Rather than shoot straight camera shots of cars careening at breakneck speed, there was a tension build. Ironically, all of the cars used for the film were to be destroyed afterward. However, someone saved the Interceptor and the movie used it again for the sequel once they found out!
Tanks and fast cars create one heck of a chase scene for the original Fast and Furious. Did you know the F-Bomb Camaro used for the final chase scene is a head nod of sorts? It’s a duplicate of former Hot Rod Magazine editor David Frieberger’s original 1971 F-Bomb Camaro.
Speed could have almost been titled something else if not for a script rewrite. Originally, the bomb was set to go off when the bus hit 20mph. Also, the infamous freeway bus jump was an add in by the film’s director!
What a horrible thing to happen to such a gorgeous 1969 Dodge Charger. Underneath the hood was a legendary 440 cubic inch v-8. It’s the perfect muscle car for small time race car driver’s turned bank robbers.
Is it just is or was Ryan Gosling’s character deathly silent in this movie? Maybe it’s because Biscuit Jr (a remote control shell rig mounted on a drivable trailer) did a lot of the stunts. After all, we wouldn’t want anything to happen to Gosling’s pretty face!
One of the most epic police chases ever filmed can be found in this 1978 classic. The Driver featured a Ford Galaxie 500 as the getaway vehicle with three Plymouth Fury police cars (1974 and 1975 models) in hot pursuit. The Galaxie made it out unscathed, but all three Fury’s were totaled for the movie!
IGN named this chase scene as one of the top car chase scenes in history in 2009. Chase scenes were filmed on location in Venice and Los Angeles for the most part. Chase scene influences involve The French Connection (1971), Ronin (1998), The Bourne Identity (2002) and various car commercials.
This is the movie that made the 2006 Audi A8 6.0 W12 famous! Don’t touch the man’s jacket or his car, remember? if some of the scenes look familiar during the epic chase scenes, it’s because they were filmed in the great city of Miami!
Remember the epic chase scene between the 55 Chevy and the 1971 Pontiac Judge in Two Lane Blacktop? It’s drag racing old school style in this movie. if only we could bring back the 70s hairstyles to match, eh?
Do you recognize this taxi from the Bourne Supremacy? It’s a Russian Volga 3110 if you want to be specific. And while it may no perform like that in real life, Jason Bourne can make the normal perform the impossible… even in a taxi.
This is the basis for the 200 remake, but some would say this film is arguably better. The 40 minute chase scene destroyed a total of 93, but it doesn’t just stop there. In total, 127 were smashed or crashed (even Eleanor, the 1973 Ford Mustang) in the making of this 1974 classic.
If you think the street from the John Wick Chase scene looks familiar, there’s good reason. It was filmed on church street in Tribeca district of New York City. Of course, anytime a 1969 Mustang GT with a 390 v-8 under the hood goes screaming by you take notice no matter where you are!
So just how did they film the epic chase scene in the Fast and the Furious? They used a mic rig which is essentially accomplished by removing the back seats and attaching a frame so camera operators can film and the vehicles can be operated independently of the actors. Wait, you thought the Vin and Paul (RIP) did all the fancy driving?
You may know this movie as the opening chase scene that made Jason Statham an international superstar. However, unlike The Fats and The Furious, Jason did most of the driving for the movie during car chase scenes. Of course, if we were given the chance to drive a 1999 BMW 7 Series E38 and Mercedes-Benz W140 we would want to sit behind the wheel too!
Cadillacs fly through the air like trapeze artists in the Matrix Reloaded. What you may not know is a 1.4 mile 3 lane loop highway was built specifically for the chase scene at a cost of $2.5 million. The set was constructed on the decommissioned Alameda Point Navy Base and subsequently destroyed after filming.
The 1970 Nova and 1969 Dodge Charger were responsible for the carnage in Death Proof. Of course, Kurt is impressive, but everyone wants to know who the beautiful lady is playing hood ornament. She happens to be Zoe Bell, a professional stunt person.
Check out Jason Bourne driving a vintage Mini Cooper through the streets of Paris trying to evade police. Seems like while he suffered from amnesia, he remembered how to do a few things. Five vintage Minis were used for the film with only one surviving final production.
Take one tanker truck on steroids and a vintage Valiant and you have Spielberg’s benchmark movie, Duel. The total budget was under $500,000 so he could only afford one truck for the film. Spielberg chose the 1955 Peterbilt for its over cab design which yielded a sinister look for the movie (and chase scene).
So who knew this was one of the top crime films of the neo-noir period? Regardless, the raw chase scene is about as real as it gets in real life. Director William Freidkin allegedly got the idea for driving the Chevy up the interstate into oncoming traffic after he fell asleep at the wheel while driving to a wedding.
This movie is most well known for two things. First, Mel Gibson only had 16 lines of dialogue throughout the entire film. Second, the tanker trunk roll at the end of the chase scene was considered to be so dangerous they banned the stuntman from eating anything 12 hours prior just in case he needed to be rushed to the hospital for surgery afterward. Yikes.
How refreshing to see a modern chase scene filmed with little to no CGI or green screen aids. Plus the lead car is a revved up red Subaru so that’s different too. Yet, just remember, all of those impossible stuns in the chase scenes with 180s between alleys and such were shot on location in Atlanta. That takes balls.
Of course, we are so glad Angelina Jolie insisted she be strapped to the hood of a Dodge Viper to film one of several chase scenes for Wanted. Filming for the chase scenes took place in Chicago for the most part. And we have to say, why in the world would you think stock Crown Victoria police cruisers would be able to keep up with a Viper?
So at the end of the movie Roman claims he owns only one of four cars ever made, the Koenigsegg CCXR Special Edition. Tej says he has number two, but his is really a CCXR (one of many many Koenigseggs made). Yet, aside from the chase scene leading up to the final statements, the most impressive thing is they destroyed a total of 260 cars for the film!
This movie put the 1977 Pontiac Firebird Trans Am on the map. To perform the famous bridge jump producers knew the Pontiac engine was not strong enough. So… they opted to drop in a Chevy engine instead so the trans had enough power to pull off the stunt and escape sheriff Buford.
While the film was controversial and had mixed reviews, nobody questioned the white 1970 Dodge Challenger. Century Fox Studios rented the Challenger from Chrysler for $1 a day. At that price, no wonder there were so many other Chrysler vehicles in the film!
You’ve likely never seen a 1971 Pontiac Lemans move like the one in The French Connection. Gene Hackman was the character behind the wheel, but a stuntman was the real scene hero. After needling him prior to showing up, he hopped in the car and they did the whole take in one long hair raising ride through the streets of San Francisco!
Yes, the shopping mall chase scene was filmed in a real (abandoned) shopping mall for the film. In total, 13 “Bluesmobiles” were used for the film. Yet, did you know one of the stunt drivers behind the wheel was John Wayne’s son?
So it seems Arnold got a little banged up in the LA River chase scene Terminator 2 is known for. He could not wear a glove and shoot while riding so he had to do it bare handed. It took weeks to perfect and the mechanism tore skin from his hand during many of the takes.
Many fans say Ronin is the best car chase scene since Bullit. The first epic scene involves an Audi S8, Citroen XM and Mercedes-Benz blazing through Nice (the narrow streets made it spectacular. The second scene (and arguably the one that made the movie famous involved an E34 BMW 535i and Peugeot 406 screaming through Paris. Epic.
Steve McQueen in a 1968 Mustang Fastback and Bill Hickman in a 1968 Dodge Charger made one of the most iconic chases scenes in movie history. However, there is a bit of debate among true fans. Some say the Dodge Charger driven by Hickman switches over to a Charger RT midway through the scene.
1. Mad Max Fury Road (2015)
This movie could best be described as one long continuous chase scene. We wonder if hardy regrets asking Mel Gibson for the lead role since his nose was broken by Charlize Theron after she hit him with her green screen arm cast by accident. In total, 150 hand made cars were made for the apocalyptic film.