U.S. landmarks have long provided us popcorn escapism, fodder for the latest special effects and, more recently, tragic reminders of real-world dangers.
WTOP Film Critic Jason Fraley ranks the most prolific attacks on U.S. landmarks in Hollywood history.
In 1906, Devil's Tower became the first declared National Monument. In 1977, Steven Spielberg made it the most iconic image of an alien invasion in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." The irony is the film's aliens don't attack and instead choose to make peace over John Williams' classic five-note score.
New York's Grand Central Terminal is one of the world's busiest transit hubs, making it a prime target for movie mayhem. The station was hit by meteors in "Armageddon" (1998), flooded and frozen in "The Day After Tomorrow" (2004) and attacked by a monster in "Cloverfield" (2008).
Alfred Hitchcock first brought peril to Mount Rushmore with Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint in "North By Northwest" (1959). Then, Martians gave it a makeover in "Mars Attacks!" (1996).
After the tragedy of 9/11, it's inspiring to see the Twin Towers survive many a disaster movie. In the 1974 remake of "King Kong," they survive Kong's climb. In "Independence Day" (1996), they're still intact behind a toppled Statue of Liberty. After a tsunami in "Deep Impact" (1998), the Twin Towers are the last things standing. And in "A.I." (2001), released just three months before 9/11, they're the only things left after humanity has ceased to exist in the year 4242.
The Washington Monument is currently covered in scaffolding thanks to the 2011 earthquake. But Hollywood has toppled it multiple times, including "Earth vs. the Flying Saucers" (1956), "Mars Attacks!" (1996), "2012" (2012) and "Olympus Has Fallen" (2013).
"San Francisco" (1936) helped pioneer the disaster flick by depicting the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Since then, the Golden Gate Bridge has been the target of multiple blockbusters, from "Superman: The Movie" (1978) to "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006).
The Hollywood sign crumbled on its own in reality, changing from "Hollywoodland" to "Hollywood." But it's a favorite for big-screen disasters, toppled in "Earthquake" (1974), destroyed by the ape in "Mighty Joe Young" (1998) and wiped out by a tornado in "The Day After Tomorrow" (2004).
The White House was attacked twice this year by movie terrorists in "Olympus Has Fallen" and "White House Down." But the most memorable White House attack was waged by aliens in Roland Emmerich's "Independence Day" (1996). Don't worry, President Pullman was safe aboard Air Force One.
If you think famous U.S. buildings in Hollywood disaster flicks, one image instantly comes to mind: Kong scaling the Empire State Building in "King Kong" (1933). The New York skyline's famous landmark was also destroyed in "Independence Day" and "Superman II."
The Statue of Liberty is the undisputed champ of Hollywood disaster flicks. Hitchcock used it for his climax in "Saboteur," just like Bryan Singer used it in his climax for "X-Men" (2000). It's thrown at Superman in "Superman IV," left lying face-first in "Independence Day," toppled in "Deep Impact" and beheaded in "Cloverfield." Most importantly, it provided one of the best twists in movie history, lying on a beach in the final shot of "Planet of the Apes."
