Twenty-five years ago, Sean Astin was no longer a Goonie but not yet a Hobbit, Pauly Shore had a burgeoning movie career on the heels of his popular MTV gig and Brendan Fraser was a few years off from fighting mummies.
They were also the stars of “Encino Man,” a cult classic teen comedy about uncool high school friends (Astin and Shore) who became cool after digging up a frozen caveman (Fraser).
As improbable as that all seems (not to mention Michael DeLuise as the film’s villainous jock), the movie, which was released 25 years ago May 22, wasn’t actually filmed in Encino.
However, the San Fernando Valley had plenty of representation in the film, which opened on Memorial Day weekend and ultimately grossed more than $40 million in the U.S., according to Box Office Mojo, despite being panned by critics.
Despite the movie being titled “Encino Man,” here’s where one of the most ‘90s films of them all was actually filmed.
1. Dave’s house – West Hills
Astin starred as the nerdy nice guy Dave Morgan, who was determined to get the cool kids to like him and win the heart of childhood crush Robyn Sweeney. How is he going to do this? By digging a pool for the prom after-party. That’s where he digs up a frozen caveman (Fraser), who he and his best friend Stoney (Shore) name Link and pass off as an exchange student from Estonia.
All of this supposedly happens at Dave’s home in Encino, but the house itself is actually in West Hills.
2. “Mega Mountain” – Six Flags Magic Mountain in Santa Clarita
One of the more memorable moments of the film that didn’t involve a choreographed prom dance scene (because that’s a requirement for ALL teen comedies), was when Stoney took Link to “Mega Mountain” to ride the “Vapor” in reverse. In real life, it was Six Flags Magic Mountain and the ride was the Viper, which still exists at the amusement park today.
3. “Encino High School” – Los Angeles Mission College in Sylmar
Even though the movie wasn’t filmed in Encino proper, another San Fernardino Valley neighborhood, Sylmar, was the home of the interior shots for the movie on a soundstage. And since this is a high school comedy, there had to be a high school. Nearby Los Angeles Mission College stood in as Encino High, where Link quickly became the cool kid on campus, despite being more than 40,000 years old.
4. “California Museum of Anthropology” – La Brea Tar Pits and Museum in Los Angeles
Remember the part where Link goes on the field trip, sees the evolution of man and freaks out? Yeah, that happened at one of Los Angeles’ favorite landmarks, the George C. Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits.
“Encino Man” is available on Amazon Video, iTunes and Google Play, so you can wheez the juice and get to watching, bu-ddy.