The 2012 action thriller The Bourne Legacy is a globetrotting movie filmed in a number of locations across the globe. Following the events of The Bourne Ultimatum, Colonel Eric Byer decides to eliminate Outcome and its agents in order to cover it up completely. This sends Jeremy Renner's Aaron Cross on the run with the last living Outcome scientist, Rachel Weisz's Dr. Marta Shearing, as they fight for their lives. The Bourne Legacy is the fourth cinematic installment of the Jason Bourne franchise.
Although The Bourne Legacy 2 never happened, director Tony Gilroy did much to capture the look and feel of previous Bourne movies in The Bourne Legacy, including shooting in a variety of locations around the world. The Bourne Trilogy did much of its filming in France, Italy, Greece, India, Germany, England, Spain, and Czech Republic. Gilroy and his crew found new locations that had never been seen before in a Bourne movie, while recreating familiar scenes in the Bourne universe. Most of The Bourne Legacy was filmed in New York and Philippines, with some shots also being captured in Canada and South Korea.
Special Ops Training Site In Alaska Shot In Alberta, Canada
The Bourne Legacy opens with Jeremy Renner's character Aaron Cross submerging himself in the freezing waters of Alaska, which actually were filmed in Alberta, Canada. The snowy mountainous region of Kananaskis Country, roughly 50 miles west of Calgary, was used to as the location of the United States Special Operations Training Site in Alaska. It was here where Aaron Cross fended off wolves multiple packs of wolves, traversed icy mountaintops, and met Oscar Issac's Outcome black ops character in the film's early scenes. It was also where Cross shot down a drone with a sniper rifle and alluded NRAG's early attempts to eliminate him.
National Research Assay Group In DC Shot In NYC Studio
The National Research Assay Group, or NRAG, is a fictional Department of Deference branch in The Bourne Legacy located in Washington, DC. All the interior scenes that took place at the NRAG headquarters were filmed at Kaufman Astoria Studios in Queens, New York City. This is where Edward Norton's character Colonel Eric Byer works during most of the film. It's where he initially expresses to his colleagues the serious threat they face if their top secret operation Outcome gets leaked after Jason Bourne exposed Operation Treadstone in The Bourne Ultimatum. It is also the investigative headquarters used to track Dr. Shearing and Aaron Cross once they flee the United States together.
Sterisyn-Morlanta Laboratory Shot In Queens, New York
The Sterisyn-Morlanta building in The Bourne Legacy is actually the real-life New York Times' printing plant in College Point, Queens, New York City. The interior of the NY Times printing plant was completely redesigned to look like a pharmaceutical laboratory. This is where Rachel Weisz's character Dr. Marta Shearing works as a scientist involved in creating medications for Outcome agents before a sudden murderous rampage occurs. One of her coworkers, a seemingly soft-tempered researcher named Dr. Foite, takes the lives of all their colleagues with a handgun. The man tried to kill Dr. Shearing, the only one left standing, but is shot by authorities before ultimately turning the weapon on himself, ending his life.
Dr. Shearing's House Shot In Hudson, NY And NYC Studio
After the traumatizing rampage in the laboratory, Dr. Shearing returns home to a rural house surrounded by trees and foliage located in Hudson, New York. Only the exterior shots of the house were used in The Bourne Legacy. The interior scenes where Aaron Cross emerges to save Dr. Shearing following an intense staircase shootout were filmed at the Kaufman Astoria Studios in Queens, NYC. The scene ends with Dr. Shearing setting the house on fire after Aaron Cross eliminates all threats. An agent claiming to be a psychologist named Dr. Connie Dowd had tried to kill Dr. Shearing after the programmed gunman's had failed to eliminate all Outcome scientists. Dowd, played by Elizabeth Marvel, ends up dead in the burning house.
Chase Scenes Shot In Manila, Philippines
Both the on-foot and motorcycle chase scenes at the end of The Bourne Legacy were filmed in the capital city of Manila, Philippines. Together these two chase sequences take up more than ten minutes of the movie's third act, which ends with both Dr. Shearing and Aaron Cross injured but still alive. The action-packed sequences feature Aaron Cross in hand-to-hand combat with a number of Filipino police who are ordered to capture him and Dr. Shearing. They also must elude the pursuit of a highly-trained Thai operative who ultimately gets killed by crashing his motorbike.
Seoul, South Korea Scenes Shot On Location
A few scenes that feature Korean city streets and subways were shot on location in commercial areas of Seoul, South Korea. Jennifer Kim's Outcome agent character receives her new medication here, changing the blue and green pill regimen to just one yellow pill, before it ends up taking her life. Kim's character is found dead sitting upright on a subway in Seoul after taking the new medication.The Bourne Legacy features several scenic shots of glowing billboards and buildings in the busy Gangnam-gu district of Seoul, which is a popular area for shopping and nightlife.
The Final Scene Shot Off Palawan Island, Philippines
The final scene of The Bourne Trilogy was shot on location among the picturesque limestone mountains in the Sule Sea off Palawan Island, Philippines. Aaron and Dr. Shearing are able to escape out to sea with the help of a friendly local Filipino man and his young son, where they celebrate their victory together. Out at sea, Aaron looks at a map of the area to scout his next move, while Dr. Shearing romantically admits that she wouldn't mind if they got lost. The ending was left open-ended so that Jeremy Renner could return as Aaron Cross at some point in the future and continue his part in the Bourne franchise.
Brief Scenes In Chicago, Pakistan, And Thailand
Several brief scenes occur in different urban areas around the world including Chicago, Pakistan, and Thailand, though it is unknown if the filming was actually done at these places. The scene in Pakistan displays an unidentified Outcome agent taking the new yellow pill and ending up dead on the street to the screams of Pakistani citizens. Chicago is where Aaron Cross goes after stealing an airplane in Alaska to avoid assassination. He breaks into a car he knows to have backup forms of fake IDs, passports, and license plates. Authorities in Bangkok, Thailand are alerted of the whereabouts of Cross and Dr. Shearing, and begin pursuing them after Shearing tries to "viral" Cross off his pills. There is also one scene in The Bourne Legacy at Empress Diner in Long Island, New York.