The 1996 movie Twister was filmed primarily in Oklahoma, with significant locations in towns like Wakita, Guthrie, El Reno, and Ponca City, plus parts of Iowa (Ames, Boone, Pilot Mound) and some studio work at Warner Bros. Studios. Key memorable spots included the water tower in Wakita, the drive-in scene in Guthrie, and the final F5 tornado sequence shot near Ames, Iowa, capturing the real "Tornado Alley" feel.
Throughout 60 days of principal photography, “Twisters” engaged with multiple communities statewide, including El Reno, Chickasha, Midwest City, Spencer, Kingfisher, Calumet, Hinton, Fairview, Okarche, Kremlin, Burbank, Pawhuska and Yukon.
At statehood in 1907, Wakita had 388 residents; by 1910, it had grown to 405. Wakita was selected as a filming location for the Hollywood blockbuster Twister (1996). In the film, the town is referred to by name, and the water tower bearing its name is shown.
"Twister," which was the second-highest grossing film of 1996, filmed scenes in Eldora, Iowa. Despite the fictional setting for the film taking place in Oklahoma, the actual movie set involved a staging area and farmhouse located in the Eldora area.
TWISTER (1996) Filming Locations (Pt. 1) | 25th Anniversary | Wakita, OK & More! THEN AND NOW 2021
Where is Twister 2 being filmed?
Like Twister, the sequel was filmed in Oklahoma – albeit in a different part of the often-tornado ravaged state. The 16,000-strong city of Chickasha stands in for a town called Crystal Springs in Twisters.
The tornadoes were created using “a complex fluid dynamic system,” Snow said — basically, almost unfathomably involved computer animation. His team divided the fictional world into “little cubes of three-dimensional specks” called voxels, or volumetric pixels.
Frame-home structural damage cannot exceed total destruction and debris dispersal, which constitutes F5 damage. Tornadoes with wind speeds over 319 mph (513 km/h) are possible and such extreme gusts have been determined using mobile radar observation, but no tornado has received an official damage-based F6 rating.
The Wichita and the Caddo can be traced back in prehistory at least two thousand years, and the Osage and Apachean-speaking people can perhaps be documented here prior to the arrival of Europeans. Other groups with no historic tribal connections may have lived here or passed through beginning some 30,000 years ago.
While the big experiment involved sodium polyacrylate-filled barrels to weaken a tornado by absorbing its moisture, the crew also had Dorothy 5. Twisters didn't fully explain how Kate and her team got Dorothy 5, but the movie implied they were given the device to use through school.
Lois Smith played Aunt Meg in Twister, the beloved matriarch whom the storm chasers ultimately rescue after a tornado flattens her home. Smith began her career in the 1950s, making her screen debut in East of Eden.
Most people know that this summer's blockbuster hit, "Twisters," was filmed in Oklahoma. However, few are aware of the specific filming locations within Oklahoma City or the incredible effort that went into transforming our beloved city for the big screen.
🌪️Today, we are taking a moment to remember the late actor Bill Paxton, who played Bill Harding, aka The Extreme, in the movie Twister. Paxton passed away 8 years ago today.
OKC's Will Rogers World Airport doesn't get its cinematic moment until the end of "Twisters," as Powell's Tyler Owens decides to chase after Kate. (It's also where they ultimately don't kiss, to some fans' dismay.)
A 2025 case study, produced by Anthony Lyza with the National Severe Storms Laboratory and other researchers with the University of Oklahoma's School of Meteorology, published with the American Meteorological Society, found that the probability of no EF5-rated tornadoes happening within an eleven year span would be ...
As the storm system moved eastward toward the Ohio, Mississippi, and Tennessee Valleys on April 27, a very powerful 80–100 knot mid-level jet stream moved into the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys behind the trough and created strong wind shear, along with a low pressure center moving quickly northeastward across those areas ...
The majority of tornado fatalities are caused by exposure to high-speed debris. In winds of 100, 150, or even 200 miles per hour, the smallest things can become deadly missiles.
There's no single "most" horror movie based on a true story, as it's subjective, but top contenders often cited include The Conjuring, based on paranormal investigators Ed & Lorraine Warren's cases; The Exorcist, inspired by a real 1940s exorcism; The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, drawing from killer Ed Gein; and The Amityville Horror, about the Lutz family's alleged haunted house experience. Other popular choices are Zodiac, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and The Entity.
Even the “Wizard of Oz” reference in the movie was inspired by reality, as their instrument was called "Dorothy." Where the movie diverges is that the real instrument did not have an array of sensors meant to get sucked up into the tornado and fly around reporting data.
So, why didn't the actress, who helped make Twister an iconic film, return for the sequel? The answer is more surprising—and infuriating—than you might think. The studio had a very distinct direction in mind for Twisters, and Hunt's bold ideas for the sequel were also shut down before they even got a fair chance.
Nevertheless, ground time can range from an instant to several hours, although the typical time is around 5 to perhaps 10 minutes. Supercell tornadoes tend to be longer-lived, while those pawned by squall lines and bow echoes may only last for a few minutes.
