What movies were filmed in the Paris Catacombs?
Updated October 27, 2026
Quick answer
The best-known film shot in the real Paris Catacombs is As Above, So Below (2014), the first production to get permission from the French authorities to film there. Catacombs (2007) is set in them, but its underground scenes were shot largely in Romania on replica sets.
Most 'Paris catacombs' horror films and viral videos take place in the wider tunnel network, which is closed to the public, rather than in the ossuary you can visit. The real underground has its own film story: in 2004 police found a fully equipped secret cinema in the tunnels under the Trocadéro.
As Above, So Below (2014)
This found-footage horror film follows explorers who go deep into the tunnels in search of a legendary relic. It was the first production to secure permission to film in the Catacombs; according to Wikipedia, the crew aimed to leave the environment unaltered, apart from a piano and a car brought down and set on fire for the film.
Catacombs (2007)
An American horror film about a young woman who gets lost in the tunnels during an underground party in Paris. The Paris street scenes were shot in the city, but according to IMDb most of the film, the catacombs included, was shot in Romania, on sets built as replicas of the real tunnels.
The real cinema under Paris
In 2004 police discovered a fully equipped movie theatre in a section of the tunnels under the Trocadéro: a big screen, seats, projection equipment, film reels, a stocked bar and a restaurant. A group called les UX claimed it. It was in the illegal part of the network, not the ossuary.
Music recorded underground
Permission to record in the Catacombs is rare. Queens of the Stone Age released Alive in the Catacombs, an acoustic performance recorded there in 2024; the band's frontman said it took 18 years to get permission.
Visiting after watching the films
The visitor route is calmer than any of the films: lit, signposted, one-way and about an hour long, with an audio guide narrated in the voice of the quarry inspector who arranged the bones. You will recognise the walls of skulls and long bones, but not the flooded crawlspaces, which belong to the closed network. If you want to go beyond the main route, the guided tours with restricted access are the legal way to see more.
Frequently asked questions
Was As Above, So Below filmed in the real Catacombs?
Yes. It was the first production allowed by the French authorities to film in the Catacombs.
Can you visit the places in the films?
Only partly. The ossuary is open to visitors on the official route; the deeper tunnels shown in most films are closed and entering them is illegal.
Is the 'lost man' Catacombs video real?
Footage presented as found footage in the tunnels circulates online; its origin is not verified. The only officially confirmed death in the tunnels is Philibert Aspairt, in 1793.
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