Photo: Luan Fonseca / Unsplash
Unconfirmed reports out of Quintana Roo suggest that two of Hollywood‘s biggest names may be eyeing Tulum as the backdrop for a new film project. According to multiple Mexican news outlets, Angelina Jolie and Salma Hayek Pinault were recently spotted visiting natural locations in the area, including the popular Cenote Casa Tortuga park, located a few miles north of Tulum.
Social media posts showing security details and what appeared to be production crew members quickly fueled speculation that the pair was scouting, and possibly even filming, scenes for an upcoming and as yet unspecified movie. Neither actress nor any production company has officially confirmed the project.
Despite all the speculation and rumors, the buzz has been enough to put Tulum’s growing profile as an international film location squarely back in the spotlight. And for a town that has steadily built its reputation beyond sun-and-sand tourism, the prospect of a Jolie-Hayek collaboration filming among its jungle cenotes and white-sand coastline would represent a significant milestone.
Angelina Jolie in Tulum: What We Know So Far
Regional news outlet Marcrix Noticias reported that both actresses toured several natural areas across the Mexican Caribbean as part of what it described as location exploration and filming for an upcoming Hollywood production. The report specifically named Cenote Casa Tortuga, a natural park featuring four cenotes, among them Cenote Wisho, Cenote Campana, Cenote Jaguar, and Cenote Tres Zapotes, as a primary filming location. The park features both open-air sinkholes and cave cenotes with ancient stalactites and stalagmites, offering a range of dramatic natural backdrops.
La Jornada Maya, another regional publication, added that sources close to the production indicated the cenote had made a “particularly favorable impression” on both Jolie and Hayek, who reportedly considered it ideal for filming key scenes.
The Tulum Times reported that the visit was conducted discreetly, with limited access to certain areas but without causing major disruptions to tourists visiting the cenote park.
A Friendship Forged on Screen
Jolie and Hayek’s professional relationship dates to Marvel‘s Eternals in 2021, directed by Chloé Zhao. Since then, the two have developed a close personal friendship. Hayek starred in Jolie’s directorial effort Without Blood, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2024 alongside Demián Bichir.
The pair also made headlines in July 2025 when they were spotted traveling on a commercial flight from Mexico City to Veracruz, Hayek’s home state. That visit included a meeting with Veracruz Governor Rocío Nahle and the state’s Secretary of Culture, Xóchitl Molina, generating similar speculation about a possible film project.
Tulum’s Growing Appeal to Filmmakers
Tulum is no stranger to the camera. Quentin Tarantino‘s Grindhouse filmed scenes there, and the 1984 thriller Against All Odds starring Jeff Bridges used the clifftop Mayan ruins as a key location. Netflix also shot The Christmas Chronicles: Part Two in the Riviera Maya region. The combination of jungle, cenotes, Caribbean coastline, and the archaeological zone gives location scouts a rare variety of settings within a compact area.
Tulum has recently been ranked as the second most recognized tourism brand in the Mexican Caribbean, trailing only Cancún, according to the Quintana Roo Tourism Promotion Council. A major Hollywood production filming here would only reinforce that momentum.
What It Could Mean for the Community
Local business owners and tourism operators said that a production of this scale could generate both immediate economic benefits and a longer-term boost once the finished film reaches international audiences. Executives at Casa Tortuga noted that the attention helps diversify Tulum’s appeal, positioning its cenotes and jungle landscapes as cinematic assets.
For now, the project remains unconfirmed. But if Jolie and Hayek do choose Tulum for their next collaboration, it would mark one of the highest-profile film shoots the town has ever hosted.