1

The Statue of Liberty’s color

Image: Pierre Blaché

We start our list with a moderately well-known fact: the Statue of Liberty’s beautiful emerald color is not original. Technically, it’s a sign of damage. While the statue's infrastructure is made of iron, its exterior is copper, which has turned green over time due to oxidation .

Fortunately, that same green coating now protects the statue from further damage and deterioration.

2

Grand Central Terminal’s hidden club

Image: David Vives

A busy train station may not seem like the ideal place for a social club, but that’s exactly the case with the Explorers Club. Operating for decades, this exclusive venue primarily serves locals, featuring a full gym, an indoor hard court, and even a smaller secondary court .

3

Gateway Arch’s time capsule

Image: Chris Hardy

This beloved St. Louis landmark holds a secret at its peak: a time capsule was placed inside the arch in 1965 , containing 762,000 signatures—many from students who attended St. Louis schools at the time.

The capsule is permanently welded inside the arch and will remain sealed for as long as the structure stands.

4

New York's High Court Building’s ball court

Image: Markus Spiske

New Yorkers seem to have a penchant for sports courts hidden on the top floors of iconic buildings—this one being the second on our list. The New York High Court Building is primarily a place for legal proceedings and bureaucratic work, but on its fifth floor, visitors will find a basketball court known as the "Highest Court in the Land."

5

The White House’s dentist

Image: Benyamin Bohlouli

It’s easy to imagine hallways and rooms filled with endless state secrets in the White House basement. But what most people won’t guess is that you can also find a dentist’s office, a carpenter’s shop, and even a bowling alley down there.

6

Niagara Falls is a huge faucet

Image: Tosab Photography

As strange as it sounds, this statement is true in a sense. The complex system of pumps and gates that administer the water of the Falls can be controlled by a central command.

In fact, part of Niagara Falls is even scheduled to be "turned off" in the coming years to replace some obsolete structures—just like a faucet.

7

Washington Monument’s Civil War graffiti

Image: Sonder Quest

Graffiti has been around all over the world, for a couple of centuries now. The Washington Monument was still under construction when the Civil War broke out, and Union soldiers stationed there carved their names and drew pictures onto the monument . These markings can still be seen today at its base.

8

Mount Rushmore’s hidden room

Image: Jéan Béller

One of America’s most famous landmarks hides a secret room known as the Hall of Records , which is filled with documents intended to preserve the nation’s history for future generations. This hidden chamber is accessed through a concealed door behind Abraham Lincoln’s ear.

9

Lincoln Memorial’s secret carvings

Image: Andy Feliciotti

Speaking of Lincoln, you’ll need a flashlight to spot this one—but it’s there. On the north wall stone of the Lincoln Memorial, the letters "EBL" can be seen carved . These initials stand for Evelyn Beatrice Longman, the artist who sculpted the memorial’s ornamental border.

10

Empire State Building’s secret floor

Image: Kit Suman

As it turns out, the Empire State Building has one more floor than the famous 102. This extra floor was originally constructed for building maintenance but now serves as an exclusive hotspot for celebrities, complete with an ultra-thin, knee-high railing separating observers from the sky surrounding them.

11

Brooklyn Bridge’s wine cellars

Image: Partha Narasimhan

Wine cellars are cold and dark places—just like the basements at the Brooklyn Bridge’s bases. This connection, now quite obvious, was made by the bridge’s engineer, Washington Roebling, who incorporated two full wine cellars into the bridge’s bases on each side and then rented the space to local businesses who needed the extra storage.

12

Disneyland’s secret members-only club

Image: Travis Gergen

If a trip to Disneyland isn’t enough of a Disney experience for you, there’s an exclusive club on the premises called Club 33 . This exclusive joint boasts an invite-only guest list, where members must pay anywhere from $25,000 to $100,000 to join, with annual membership dues ranging from $12,500 to $30,000. Do you think it’s worth it?

1

Jurassic World Dominion

Image: Christopher Stark

We understand; bringing giant reptiles from millions of years ago to life isn’t easy… or cheap. Maybe that’s why Jurassic World: Dominion (2022) cost an incredible $465 million! But not all of that went to special effects. Filmed during the pandemic, the costs of safety measures and protocols for the large cast and crew were anything but low. The actors even spent months quarantining in the luxurious Langley Hotel near Pinewood Studios, which also inflated the film’s budget.

2

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Image: Lyman Hansel Gerona

There are Star Wars fans everywhere, and for good reason, as it’s considered one of the greatest movie franchises of all time. But creating something this good comes at a high price: $447 million, to be precise. In addition to the visual effects and incredibly detailed costumes, the movie was shot across multiple countries: England, Iceland, Ireland, and even the United Arab Emirates. On top of that, the production counted with a top-tier cast, including Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher.

3

Fast X

Image: Cook aynne

Fast X (2023) ranks among the most expensive movies ever made, with an incredible budget of $379 million. But it wasn’t just the explosions, wild rollovers, and high-speed chases that elevated the costs; a big part went into reuniting much of the original cast. On top of that, the production didn’t stick to Los Angeles alone; it also filmed in beautiful international locations such as Rome, Turin, and Lisbon.

4

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Image: Intricate Explorer

This film cost about the same as Fast X , but it came out 12 years earlier, when that budget was even more impressive. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011) accumulated around $378.5 million in production costs, much of it going to star salaries, especially Johnny Depp, who reportedly earned $55 million for his role. And that’s not all; the film’s visual effects and far shooting locations (Hawaii, the UK, Puerto Rico) drove the budget even higher.

5

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Image: Jason Leung

The superheroes’ suits, the incredible effects that brought their powers to life, the amazing battle scenes, and all the destruction they caused pushed the budget of Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015) to $365 million. But here’s the most interesting part: another film from the same saga, Avengers: Endgame , was released four years later and actually cost less (about $356 million).

6

Avatar: The Way of Water

Image: Luke Tanis

One thing’s for sure: making a movie is never easy, especially when it features a giant blue alien species living in an underwater world. That’s the case with Avatar: The Way of Water , released in 2022 with an astounding budget of $350 million. Costs climbed even higher thanks to its long filming schedule, which stretched from 2017 all the way through 2020!

7

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Image: Intricate Explorer

Indiana Jones always gives his all, and his latest adventure, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023), was proof of that. The film cost around $327 million to produce, and the action didn’t stay confined to a studio, as the cast, crew, and equipment traveled to locations across the UK, Morocco, and Italy. In addition, the innovative visual effects and de-aging technology used to bring Harrison Ford’s character to life weren’t exactly cheap.

8

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning

Image: Nao Takabayashi

Powerful action scenes and chases, biplanes performing aerial stunts, fierce battles, and underwater sequences: you’ll find all this and more in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning (2025). But all this didn't come out of nowhere; it cost $300 million! Beyond the vehicles and specialized equipment, security measures had to be a serious matter. On the other hand, bringing Tom Cruise back to the saga and having him perform his own stunts added more dollars to the equation, with the actor reportedly earning between $70 million and $120 million for the movie.

9

No Time to Die

Image: Marcel Eberle

We were all excited to see Daniel Craig back in James Bond’s shoes, and we were lucky enough to watch him do it! But, of course, it didn’t come cheap. Beyond Craig’s generous salary and advanced visual effects, the film’s $250 million budget also covered the costs of filming across multiple, distant locations, including Italy, Jamaica, Norway, the Faroe Islands, and the UK!

10

Snow White

Image: Priscilla Du Preez 🇨🇦

After so many scenes of action, aliens, weapons, and explosions, you probably didn’t expect Snow White (2025) to make this list, right? But it did! While the film’s budget wasn’t officially confirmed, estimates put it at around $270 million. So, where did all that money go? First of all, the film relied on high-quality visual effects to bring the magic and fantasy of the fairy tale to life. But that wasn’t all; lead actresses Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot reportedly requested substantial salaries.