From major box office hits to cult classics, Austin has provided a spectacular landscape for filmmakers to bring their vision to life. Visitors have flocked to destinations featured in iconic locally made films like "Dazed and Confused" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." With over 50 years of production, there are many film tourism locations in the Austin area to experience including those seen in "Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams."

About "Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams"

Now fully-fledged Spy Kids, Carmen (Alexa Vega) and Juni (Daryl Sabara) Cortez are back for another James Bond-style adventure. Their newest mission takes the sibling duo to a distant island, where a mysterious scientist named Romero (Buscemi) and his imaginative creatures live. But this time they also have to rival sibling Spy Kids, as they head right into a trap that will test every spy in the Cortez family.

Details: Dimension Films / Rated PG / 100 minutes / Family, Adventure, Action
Director: Robert Rodriguez
Cast: Antonio Banderas, Carla Gugino, Alexa Vega, Daryl Sabara, Mike Judge, Ricardo Montalbán, Holland Taylor, Christopher McDonald, Danny Trejo, Cheech Marin and Steve Buscemi
Streaming On: @YouTube, @PrimeVideo, @GooglePlay, @VuduFans, @MicrosoftStore, @iTunes, @Redbox

Locations

Scene: Capitol Building

Spy Kids 2 screengrab showing a ship flying over the Texas State Capitol

The capitol building, where Carmen (Vega) and Juni (Sabara) meet the President, is actually the Texas Capitol in downtown Austin. The scene was filmed in the open air rotunda below the Capitol building and there are also glimpses of the building's iconic lone star as the kids get a birds-eye view when the Magna Men fly in and attack. This location was also used in the production of "True Grit," "Tree of Life" and Robert Rodriguez's "Machete"

Location: Texas State Capitol (1100 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701)
 

Scene: Island of Leeke Leeke

Spy Kids 2 screengrab showing grandparents Helga and Valentin talking to Gregorio on the Island

One might think Romero’s (Buscemi) private Island of Leeke Leeke is located in the Caribbean and, while some shots were shot in Costa Rica, the "ocean" is actually Austin's Lake Travis with the shoreline digitally removed. As the adventure moves inland, scenes were shot at McKinney Falls State Park to replicate a rocky beach.

Location: Lake Travis, Texas (4370 Mansfield Dam Park Rd, Austin, TX 78732 )
Location: McKinney Falls State Park (5808 McKinney Falls Pkwy, Austin, TX 78744)
 

Scene: Paramount Theater Concert

Spy Kids 2 screengrab showing the marquee sign at the Paramount Theatre lit up. The sign reads "Island of Lost Dreams"

In a post-credits sequence, Machete (Trejo) hosts a Spy Kids concert where Carmen (Vega) and Juni (Sabara) rock out the historic Paramount Theater in downtown Austin. The location was also used in the filming of "The Newton Boys."

Location: Paramount Theater (713 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701)

Iconic Filming Location Map

 

Explore more iconic filming locations during your next visit to Austin. The Austin Film Tourism Guide has details on the where scenes from your favorite movie and television series were filmed in and around Austin.