What Was Filmed at Durdle Door

The most recent — and arguably the most talked-about — production to use Durdle Door is the science fiction blockbuster Project Hail Mary, starring Ryan Gosling. Released in UK cinemas in March 2026, the film became the biggest box office hit of the year, taking over £120 million in its first weekend alone.

Based on the bestselling novel by Andy Weir, the film follows Ryland Grace — a schoolteacher turned astronaut who wakes alone on a spacecraft with no memory, only to realise he is humanity’s last hope of preventing the sun’s destruction. Among its most memorable and emotionally powerful images is a closing scene set on the beach at Durdle Door, which has reportedly been moving audiences to tears – and our Marketing Manager, Melissa, fell into that group when she watched the film on its opening weekend.

Filming took place over several days in October 2024. The Lulworth Estate temporarily closed the beach, Man O’War Beach, and the car park while a large Amazon MGM film crew worked on location. Locals walking the South West Coast Path at the time were stunned to spot Ryan Gosling himself on the beach, reportedly wearing white chinos and a chunky knit cardigan. Quite a sight on a Dorset morning – and one we are sad to have missed in person!

Thomas Hardy set his novels in the fictional county of Wessex — his literary interpretation of Dorset. It makes perfect sense, then, that adaptations of his work keep returning to the real Dorset countryside, including Durdle Door.

The 1967 adaptation, directed by John Schlesinger and starring Julie Christie and Terence Stamp, is a classic of British cinema. Durdle Door features in the memorable scene where Stamp’s character swims in the sea near Scratchy Bottom, the small valley just west of the arch. Bere Regis, Abbotsbury, and Maiden Castle all feature too, making it something of a love letter to the Dorset landscape.

Nearly fifty years later, the 2015 remake starring Carey Mulligan returned to the same county, using Durdle Door again alongside Mapperton House near Beaminster, West Bay, and Sherborne. Both versions are beautiful examples of how the Dorset coast provides an unrivalled period backdrop — and a compelling reason to visit.

The 1997 biographical drama Wilde, starring Stephen Fry as Oscar Wilde alongside Jude Law and Vanessa Redgrave, features Durdle Door in a poignant scene in which Wilde’s wife, played by Jennifer Ehle, reflects on marriage. The Dorset coastline lends the film a sense of timeless English melancholy that suits the story beautifully, and it remains one of the more understated big-screen appearances of the landmark.

Durdle Door’s screen career stretches back well before the streaming age. Over the decades, it has featured in some genuinely iconic music videos.

Cliff Richard — ‘Saviour’s Day’ (1990)

Perhaps the most famous of all the Durdle Door music videos, Cliff Richard’s Saviour’s Day was filmed almost entirely at the location. The song reached Christmas number one, meaning Durdle Door appeared on television screens across the nation throughout the festive season — Cliff on a cliff, at Christmas, is an unbeatable combination.

Tears for Fears — ‘Shout’ (1984)

Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith filmed footage for their landmark 1984 single Shout at Durdle Door, with windswept clifftop scenes intercut with studio performance footage. Shout became one of the defining songs of the decade, and the Durdle Door sequences give it a distinctly dramatic, atmospheric quality.

Bruce Dickinson — ‘Tears of the Dragon’ (1994)

Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson filmed his music video for Tears of the Dragon at Durdle Door, adding a rock music chapter to the location’s varied screen history.

Billy Ocean — ‘Loverboy’ (1985)

Billy Ocean’s Loverboy also features Durdle Door in its production, combining the Dorset coastline with some wonderfully imaginative studio sequences.