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| Where Was Crawlers Filmed? All Filming Locations of the 2026 Movie. |
The 2026 creature thriller Crawlers was filmed primarily in Lisbon, Portugal, with additional interior and technical filming in Madrid, Spain. Directed by Angel Gomez Hernandez and written by Jayson Rothwell, the film transforms European locations into a fictional Los Angeles apartment complex, where an ordinary residential building becomes the setting for a terrifying spider infestation. Filmed under the working title Arachnid, the production began in July 2024 and wrapped after approximately five weeks of principal photography in September 2024.
Although the story is set in California, the production team looked to southern Europe to create its claustrophobic urban environment without travelling across the United States. Not every individual building, studio or street used during filming has been publicly identified, so the locations below focus on the documented filming areas and relevant places worth exploring.
Lisbon, Portugal, served as the principal filming destination for Crawlers, providing the urban architecture and residential environments needed to bring the fictional Paradiso Palms apartment complex to life. The Portuguese capital is known for its distinctive tiled façades, narrow streets, historic buildings and contrasting modern developments, making it a versatile backdrop for productions that need several different architectural styles within a relatively compact area.
For Crawlers, the challenge was to make Lisbon stand in for Los Angeles, rather than simply showcase Portugal as a holiday destination. The production design team had to create a convincing American residential atmosphere while preserving the enclosed, oppressive feeling essential to a creature thriller.
Lisbon's mix of apartment blocks, courtyards and dense urban infrastructure offered the right ingredients. Visitors exploring the city can discover its architectural contrasts for themselves, although finding the exact building used in the film requires more specific production information. After all, an ordinary apartment block might look perfectly innocent until a filmmaker decides to fill its corridors with an unreasonable number of eight-legged tenants.
One of the most relevant places to explore in Lisbon is Parque das Nações, a modern district along the Tagus River. Developed around the 1998 Lisbon World Exposition, the area features contemporary residential buildings, broad public spaces and striking modern architecture. Its planned urban environment provides a useful example of the kind of metropolitan setting that can help establish the atmosphere of a modern city on screen.
While the exact Crawlers filming address has not been established publicly, Parque das Nações offers visitors a chance to experience a different side of Lisbon beyond its traditional neighbourhoods. The district is particularly appealing to travellers who enjoy modern architecture, waterfront walks and open public spaces. It also provides a sharp contrast with the cramped residential environment described in the film. Thankfully, visitors can enjoy the area without having to inspect every ventilation grille for suspicious movement.
Another Lisbon destination worth considering is Avenida da Liberdade, one of the city's best-known boulevards. Lined with trees, hotels, shops and grand buildings, the avenue presents a polished metropolitan atmosphere that differs considerably from the city's older streets. Its broad layout and varied architecture illustrate how Lisbon can offer several visual identities within the same city. For a film production recreating an American urban environment, this architectural diversity can be useful when establishing a convincing sense of place.
However, the avenue should be treated as a separate sightseeing destination rather than a confirmed Crawlers filming address. Visitors can stroll along the boulevard, explore its surrounding streets and experience the capital's busier commercial side. It is also an excellent reminder that real cities rarely resemble the single location audiences see on screen. Film crews have the rather convenient habit of choosing the most suitable angles, while the rest of the city continues with its traffic, shopping and decidedly uncinematic daily errands.
Alfama, Lisbon's historic hillside neighbourhood, is another worthwhile stop for anyone planning a film-inspired visit to the Portuguese capital. Its winding lanes, traditional buildings, staircases and tightly packed streets create an atmosphere that feels worlds away from a contemporary American apartment complex. Alfama is not an established filming location for Crawlers, but it demonstrates the architectural range available to productions working in Lisbon. Visitors can explore the neighbourhood on foot, admire its historic character and enjoy views across the city and the Tagus River.
Its narrow passages and layered streets also reveal how dramatically the appearance of a city can change from one district to another. That versatility is one of Lisbon's strongest attractions for filmmakers and travellers alike. Just remember that a maze of old streets is considerably more enjoyable when the biggest obstacle is finding a café rather than navigating an imaginary infestation of highly determined spiders.
Madrid, Spain, provided an additional production base for Crawlers, particularly for specialised interior work and technically demanding sequences. While Lisbon supplied the principal filming environment, Madrid's established film-production infrastructure makes it a practical destination for projects requiring controlled spaces, complex camera setups and detailed effects work.
Studio environments allow filmmakers to manage lighting, sound, camera movement and physical effects with greater precision than they can achieve in many real buildings. This is particularly important for a creature feature, where the illusion of spiders moving through tight corridors, mechanical spaces and enclosed rooms needs to feel convincing.
Madrid's role therefore complements the production's Portuguese locations by supporting the technical side of the filmmaking process. The exact studio or soundstage used for Crawlers has not been publicly identified in the available production details, so visitors should not assume that any particular Madrid facility hosted the film. Nevertheless, the Spanish capital remains an interesting destination for anyone curious about the film industry's work behind the camera.
For a broader Madrid itinerary, Gran Vía offers an excellent introduction to the city's busy urban character. Known for its monumental buildings, theatres, shops and commercial activity, the avenue presents a lively metropolitan landscape that contrasts with Lisbon's historic streets. It is not a confirmed Crawlers filming location, but it is a useful destination for travellers interested in the kind of dense city environment that frequently inspires urban thrillers. Visitors can admire the architecture, explore the surrounding shopping streets and experience Madrid's energetic atmosphere.
The avenue also illustrates why a film's fictional setting does not always correspond to a single real-world city: filmmakers can combine controlled interiors, architectural details and carefully selected exterior shots to create a location that feels entirely cohesive on screen. The result may look like one American apartment complex, even when the production process involves several different places and a substantial amount of visual trickery.
Another destination worth adding to a Madrid visit is Matadero Madrid, a former industrial complex converted into a contemporary arts and cultural centre. Its expansive buildings, industrial features and adaptable spaces provide a glimpse into the city's changing architectural landscape.
Although it has not been established as a filming location for Crawlers, Matadero Madrid is relevant to visitors interested in the relationship between urban spaces, creative industries and production design. Former industrial buildings can offer filmmakers unusual textures, dramatic interiors and flexible environments, although that general suitability should not be mistaken for evidence of their involvement in a specific production.
For travellers, the complex offers exhibitions, cultural activities and a different perspective on Madrid beyond its famous shopping streets and historic landmarks. It is also a reminder that buildings can acquire entirely new identities through design and creative use. A former industrial site can become an arts destination, while an ordinary residential building can become the most alarming address in a creature thriller.
The production's approach to Crawlers is particularly interesting because its story takes place almost entirely within the fictional Paradiso Palms apartment complex. Rather than following characters across numerous cities and landscapes, the film concentrates its tension inside one enclosed residential environment. That creative decision places considerable importance on the production design, which must make corridors, maintenance areas, ventilation systems and shared living spaces feel like parts of a believable building.
The setting needs to appear familiar enough for audiences to recognise everyday apartment life, yet threatening enough to support a survival thriller. Lisbon's principal filming environment and Madrid's additional production facilities helped establish the practical foundations for that approach.
The available information does not identify every individual building or studio, so a precise door-by-door filming tour is not currently possible. Still, understanding the two principal production destinations offers a useful starting point for anyone interested in how European locations can be transformed into an American setting.
My opinion is that Crawlers has an intriguing advantage when it comes to its filming locations. Lisbon and Madrid are both appealing travel destinations, but their value here goes beyond attractive architecture and city-break potential. They demonstrate how filmmakers can use familiar urban environments to build an entirely different world.
Lisbon's residential buildings provide the production with a practical foundation, while Madrid offers the sort of production infrastructure needed for more controlled technical sequences. That combination makes more sense than sending an entire crew across California simply to recreate a single apartment complex. It also gives curious viewers two cities to explore instead of one.
The slightly amusing part is that a film can make apartment living look like an extreme sport, yet its actual production may involve carefully planned sets, controlled lighting and a great deal of patient technical work. The real locations are worth visiting for their own character, even if you will probably find the architecture more relaxing without a swarm of spiders added in post-production.
Ultimately, the confirmed geographical picture of Crawlers points to Lisbon, Portugal, as its principal filming destination, with Madrid, Spain, supporting additional production work. Individual building addresses and studio names have not all been publicly disclosed, so it is important to distinguish established production information from places that simply make worthwhile additions to a travel itinerary. If you are planning a European trip inspired by the 2026 film, Lisbon offers historic neighbourhoods, modern districts and varied residential architecture, while Madrid adds major boulevards, cultural spaces and a strong connection to the screen-production industry.
Which city would you most like to explore, Lisbon or Madrid? And if you could visit a real location from Crawlers, would you choose the residential architecture that inspired its setting or the studios where the film's more technical scenes came together? Share your thoughts and let us know which other filming locations you would like to see explored next.