Every film production begins with the same question: Where do we shoot this? Now, changing conditions are making crews have to consider whether the weather will let them finish. 

Fire seasons without an end date, winters short on snow, heat that makes an outdoor set a safety problem, tropical storms landing mid-schedule, disasters displacing workers and affecting their livelihoods and careers. Together they're changing where the industry is able to work.

Wildfires hit the heart of the film

Hollywood became the center of the film business partly because of its weather. Early studios chased reliable sunlight, and they got a bonus: mountains, desert and coastline within an hour's drive, and very little on the calendar that could stop a shoot. That last part no longer holds.

In 2025, Los Angeles was hit with wildfires that devastated communities and the film industry.

(MORE: Catastrophic Southern California wildfires ignite)

Those fires destroyed or damaged more than 12,000 structures. And an estimated 8,000 workers lived in areas affected by the fires, according to the union IATSE.

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More than a dozen TV shows paused filming, from Grey’s Anatomy to Jimmy Kimmel Live.

Many filming locations were also lost in the fires — from canyon roads, hillside neighborhoods, and wooded areas — used for everything from commercials to TV dramas and music videos.

(MORE: Canada fires bring thick smoke, terrible air quality to Toronto)

The fires themselves aren’t the only problem; the smoke also comes into play. In July, thick wildfire smoke put film crews shooting in Ontario under “mask up” orders and a ban on the use of drones during filmmaking.

Coastal impacts and tropical storms halt production

When Hurricane Ida hit Louisiana in 2021, several productions, including those from Disney, Netflix and NBC, were suspended.

(MORE: Hurricane Ida recap: devastation in southeast Louisiana, then record flooding in the Northeast)

The Florida Department of Commerce notes that impacts of hurricanes in certain Florida counties are something to factor into considerations to film there.

While the worst of these changes are still decades out, rising sea levels, coastal erosion, stronger storm surges and increased flooding will hit areas like Hawaii, Miami and New Orleans. This will impact filmmaking there, just like anything else. 

Another factor at play is the insurance industry. Underwriters are now accounting for seasonal disaster risks and historical patterns when evaluating filming locations since high-risk zones can result in higher deductibles.

Extreme heat risks and fake snow

In 2022, several actors and crew members on the set of the TV show Snowpiercer needed medical attention and were treated at a hospital during a heat wave. This pushed producers to make some changes to their plans for dealing with the extreme heat — including 15-30 minute breaks every hour and a requirement for staff to wear hats on hot days.

(MORE: America's deadliest weather isn't tornadoes, hurricanes, flooding or lightning — it's heat)

Warmer winters are bringing more rain and less snow to upstate New York.

Production designer Jeremy Hindle says the changing weather conditions were a “nightmare” for finding locations they could feasibly film in for an episode of Severance. 

Hindle said that there was a “mind-blowing amount” of snow at the beginning of the shoot, but then it got hot and melted and left them with nothing. Around 70% of the snow in the final cut ended up having to be CGI.

The weather at play with televised sports

One of the biggest globally televised events, the Olympics, felt the changes too — winter and summer games alike.

Ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics, extreme heat was a concern. One report found that the average early August temperature in Paris has risen by 5.58 degrees Fahrenheit since the Olympics were last held in that city in 1924. 

(MORE: Traveling to Europe? The heat might be closing the attractions you are planning to visit)

A few degrees can make a big difference to athletes. And moving events to cooler hours protects athletes, but it also kills live viewership and ad revenue.

In the 2021 Tokyo games, high humidity and 90-degree days led 100 athletes to seek medical attention for heat illnesses.

Dangerous heat was a highlight of this year’s World Cup as well, and the 2030 games are looking even more precarious. 

(MORE: The 2030 World Cup in Morocco, Portugal and Spain may bring even more dangerous heat than 2026)

A study found that, out of 93 potential host sites, only 52 would have reliable conditions for the Winter Olympics in the 2050s.

During the Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games, it was too warm to make snow on the ski slopes during the day, so machines had to run at night to produce enough snow for the competitions.

A cycle that feeds itself

The kicker to all of this? Film productions filming climate risk generate even more emissions.

According to sustainability firm Earth Angel, moving a 20-week TV shoot from LA to Vancouver adds roughly 104 metric tons of CO2, compared to 16 tons for the average American carbon footprint in a year. The industry running from climate change is accelerating it.

And you feel it two ways. Release dates slip. And when insurance and location costs climb, the projects cut first are the ones with the thinnest margins: indies, documentaries, mid-budget dramas. The blockbusters still get made. The small films quietly don't.

Content writer Ada Wood enjoys exploring the stories that science and climate teach us about our natural world and how it influences the way we live in it.