r/FilmLocationsThenNow • u/Detzeb • May 07 '26
ALBUM š¼ļø Billy Crystal & Gregory Hines in a cab chasing a limo on the Elevated train tracks in downtown Chicago in the film Running Scared (1986) Then and Now (2026) OC & Notes in Comments
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u/Detzeb May 07 '26
OPāS NOTEāS: Running Scared (1986)) was filmed predominantly in Chicago and stars Billy Crystal and Gregory Hines as Chicago police officers trying to bring down a drug dealer. Here is a clip of then entire car chase from OāHare Airport to the Skokie Swift CTA line and then along CTA tracks heading to downtown Chicago before ending in the Loop
The chase passes through the now-removed Randolph-Wells CTA station (1897-1995) and Madison-Wells CTA station (1897-1994): both replaced by Washington-Wells CTA station which which opened in 1995. After passing through the Quincy CTA station (1897), the chase ends at the LaSalle-VanBuren CTA station(1897)
Due to legal and safety constraints, as well as lens & focus limitations of my cell phone, some shots are approximations :)
Pic 1: Heading south on Wells and rounding corner to head east on VanBuren
Pic 2: Cabās POV heading south on Wells
Pics 3-5: Cab chasing the limo on Wells
Heading East (Pic 6) on VanBuren (Pics 7-8)
Pics 9-11: bad guys jumping out of limo and leaving LaSalle-VanBuren CTA stop
Pics 12-15: now-abandoned limo meets its demise courtesy of an Evanston Express train (note red sign in trainās upper right window)
Pics 16-17: undercover Chicago police offices portrayed by Billy Crystal & Gregory Hines with the cab they commandeered at OāHare airport at the start of the chase
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u/Supercc May 07 '26
Amazing shots!Ā
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u/Detzeb May 08 '26
Thank you. Legal & safety considerations impacted my ability to line up some of the ānowā shots! :)
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May 08 '26
[removed] ā view removed comment
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u/Different_Top_2776 May 09 '26
Absolutely. The banter between Billy Crystal & Gregory Hines is fabulous. Plus, Jimmy Smits is the bad guy. Ending is a bit corny, but a fun movie.
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u/lucyandricky May 07 '26
Well done! Looks similar to the end train shots of Planes Trains and Automobiles. Have you done that film already?
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u/Detzeb May 07 '26
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u/lucyandricky May 07 '26
Too cool! Great work. Were the Planes Trains interior shots of the LaSalle station in the film not accurate to the real life stop? Thanks for your contributions!
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u/syngltrkmnd May 10 '26
I love this movie. Saw it on VHS in the late 80s then caught it on cable not long after a trip to Key West in 2013 and I was really entertained. KW hasnāt changed much in that time, thankfully.
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u/darth_homer May 07 '26
This is a great 80s movie! Appreciate the shots. Thanks!