Von Doom Industries | MCU Location Scout

The plaza outside Von Doom Industries.

Typical of Victor Von Doom to build a 30-foot statue of himself.

Entrance

The film opens with Reed and Ben visiting Von Doom Industries, hoping to get Reed’s friend Victor to invest in his research. They marvel at the giant metal statue of the industrialist outside his building.

This location is the 102 Avenue entrance to the Central City Mall in Surrey, British Columbia. This complex also houses the Simon Fraser University campus and an office tower, but sadly, no giant statue of Victor Von Doom. The pan up on the (digitally created) building reveals the Empire State Building a few blocks away, putting this structure somewhere in Midtown.

  • Worker on a giant black sculpture outside Von Doom Industries.
  • Reed and Ben in the plaza outside Von Doom Industries.
  • Reed and Ben in the plaza outside Von Doom Industries.
  • Looking up at the Von Doom Industries building.

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Interior

Reed makes a presentation to Victor about the chance to study a passing cosmic storm and it’s scientific benefits.

The interior of Von Doom’s building and penthouse were all shot on a soundstage.

  • Reed and Ben in the boardroom of Von Doom Industries.
  • Reed and Ben with Victor in the boardroom of Von Doom Industries.
  • Reed, Ben, Victor and Sue in the boardroom of Von Doom Industries.
  • Victor in his bathroom.
  • Doctor Doom in the boardroom of Von Doom Industries.

Aerial

Several aerial establishing shots depict Victor’s skyscraper in the Manhattan skyline.

The geography for the placement of this arrow-shaped building is mostly consistent. It appears to be north of the Empire State Building, probably around Bryant Park in Midtown. Sometimes it seems closer to the Empire State Building, as in the first two images below.

Images 3 and 4 show Victor watching the cosmic ray generator at the Baxter Building, looking southwest towards the Empire State Building, putting the location of Von Doom’s tower closer to the Met Life Building. That would be consistent with the final image of Ben and Victor falling out of the skyscraper with the Chrysler Building behind them. The problem here is that the Baxter Building is depicted in all other sequences as uptown from Times Square and closer to Central Park, not south. The fifth image is flopped left to right, with the Empire State Building on the left and the East River on the right.

The final fight between the Fantastic Four and Doom occurs somewhere along East 58th Street, sixteen blocks north of this approximate location, even though the characters fell out of Doom’s building to the street below. This signage would be more consistent of falling from the Baxter Building instead.

  • Aerial view of Empire State Building and Von Doom Industries in the background.
  • Aerial view of Empire State Building and Von Doom Industries in the background.
  • View of Empire State Building and Baxter building as seen from Von Doom Industries tower.
  • Victor looking at Baxter building as seen from Von Doom Industries tower.
  • Nighttime aerial of Von Doom Industries building.
  • Doom and Ben fly through window outside Von Doom Industries tower, with the Chrysler Building in the background.

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(Fantastic Four, 2005)