Where was Legally Blonde filmed?

Elle Woods seems to have the perfect life. She’s popular, beautiful, and of course a natural blonde. She’s also dating the charming, rich, and oh so handsome Warner, and she even suspects that Warner might be about to propose at their big date tonight. She picks out the perfect outfit and looks ahead to the evening full of anticipation. “In a few hours, I’ll be the future Mrs. Warner Huntington III,” she says excitedly. At first, everything at the romantic candlelit dinner seems perfect, but Elle is in for a very nasty surprise. Warner isn’t there to propose to her, he’s there to break up with her. “Law school is a completely different world, and I need to be serious,” he reveals. “I think we should break up,” he says, just as Elle, who is on completely the wrong track and thinks he’s about to propose, says “I do.” The restaurant chosen for this Legally Blonde filming location is Il Cielo, which is found at 9018 Burton Way in Beverly Hills, so it’s easy to check out on any Hollywood film adventure.

If you’ve never seen a fish out of water before, just take a look at Elle arriving for her first day at Harvard. Dressed in bright, bold colors and with her pampered pooch Bruiser by her side, Elle seems completely out of place in the serious, stuffy law school atmosphere. But she’s determined to make a good impression nonetheless, despite the heckles of bemused onlookers, and goes to pick up her class schedule. “Wait a second. My social events calendar is missing,” she says after being handed a folder, only to be met with a shake of the head and roll of the eyes. She then asks if Warner has checked in yet but is brutally mocked once again: “Maybe you should check with the cruise director on the lido deck,” she’s told. This embarrassing scene was filmed on the patio of Kerckhoff Hall at UCLA. Found at 308 Westwood Plaza, it’s also close to where the lawn scene in which students introduce themselves to one another was filmed.

Dressed in her best law school ensemble, Elle is ready for her first class as a “serious law student.” She’s nervous but is still striding confidently to class when she comes across Warner. Determined to make a good impression and seem unaffected by his presence, Elle strolls past to make sure Warner will notice her. Warner thinks she’s there to see him, but Elle sets her straight. “No, silly, I go here,” she says. “Harvard?” a shocked Warner replies. “You … got into Harvard Law?” Warner asks, still struggling to understand what’s going on. “What, like it’s hard?” Elle shrugs. As Warner stands open-mouthed, Elle then tells him her plans for organizing a social event. “This is going to be just like senior year, except for funner!” she gushes. As mentioned above, the classroom scenes from Legally Blonde weren’t actually shot at Harvard. Instead, they were filmed at Rose City High School in Pasadena, which you can find at 351 S. Hudson Avenue.

After a disastrous first day in which Elle is kicked out of class by her professor, a decision supported by Vivian, she storms out in a huff. Heading for a courtyard, she plonks herself down on a bench, which just so happens to be right next to where Emmett (Luke Wilson) is sitting. As Elle sits and mutters to herself, Emmett asks if she’s OK. They share stories about the harsh teaching methods of Professor Stromwell (Holland Taylor), with Emmett admitting that the formidable teacher once made him cry, and Emmett offers her advice on how to deal with all her teachers. “Wow. I’m really glad I met you,” she smiles, and it’s clear that there’s a spark between the two. Unfortunately, the nice moment is spoiled by Warner’s arrival, but Elle will work out that Emmett has so much more to offer than Warner soon enough. The “Harvard” square chosen as this Legally Blonde filming location is actually found at All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena. You’ll need to head to 132 North Euclid Avenue, just across the road from Pasadena City Hall, to visit this site.

As Elle struggles to make friends and find her way at Harvard, there’s one person she befriends straight away: her manicurist Paulette (Jennifer Coolidge). Paulette is always there to lend Elle a shoulder to cry on, but her own life is something of a mess. So after helping Paulette escape the clutches of her nasty ex, Elle takes it upon herself to help her friend woo the hunky UPS guy she’s previously been too shy to talk to. “Trust me, Paulette. You have all the equipment, you just need to read the manual,” Elle explains. Elle then goes on to teach her friend a move her mother taught her in junior high, a move that has a “98% success rate at getting a man’s attention” — the now iconic “Bend and Snap.” Before long, all the customers and staff at the beauty salon are joining in. Paulette’s beauty salon, Neptune’s Beauty Nook, was filmed in a storefront at 625 South Myrtle Avenue, Monrovia, roughly 10 miles east of Pasadena. If you’re an Elle Woods aficionado, you’ll definitely want to check out the location where the Bend and Snap was born.

It’s been a long and winding road, and sometimes it seemed like Elle would never make it, but now she’s finally ready to graduate law school. Two years later, Elle isn’t just graduating, she’s the class-elected speaker for the graduation ceremony. As she shares meaningful glances with her friends and family in the audience, Elle delivers a stirring speech to her peers. “You must always have faith in people, and most importantly, you must always have faith in yourself. Congratulations, class of 2004. We did it!” she says with a grin. Then we get the on-screen text wrap-up of what all the main characters are up to, like Vivian dumping Warner and Warner graduating without honors, a girlfriend, or any job offers. Even better, we learn that Emmett and Will have been dating for two years and Emmett is going to propose to her tonight. There’s an interesting story behind this Legally Blonde filming location. The original version of the film didn’t have a graduation scene, but after the initial ending tested poorly with audiences, the decision was made to add the scene. The only problem was that Reese Witherspoon was already filming a new project in London, so the graduation scene was filmed across the pond in the UK. The setting for this inspirational finale was the Great Hall at Dulwich College, in Dulwich Village.