Battle: Los Angeles – The Story Behind the 2011 Alien Invasion Film
The What Happened to This Horror Movie episode on Battle: Los Angeles was written by Jaime Vasquez:
With extraterrestrial thrillers like 2012, The Day the Earth Stood Still, and especially the well-received mockumentary District 9 arriving just a couple of years before, 2011’s Battle: Los Angeles really had to step things up if it wanted to stand out. Director Jonathan Liebesman, lead actor Aaron Eckhart, and a strong supporting cast set out to bring the alien-invasion concept to a gritty, realistic level. But did they actually nail it, or was it a misfire? How did the cast train to play Marines? What real historical event inspired the story? Which character was added at the last minute? And which legendary critic didn’t just take shots at the film, he basically implied it could ruin relationships? Plus, we can’t ignore the other battle: a 2010s rematch of Armageddon vs. Deep Impact—this time it was Skyline vs. Battle: Los Angeles, and the fight went all the way to court. Lots of incoming battleships here, so grab your combat gear and let’s figure out what happened to Battle: Los Angeles.
The Origins of the Story
Screenwriter Chris Bertolini already had experience with military narratives, having written The General’s Daughter starring John Travolta. That film, centered on a military mystery, earned $150 million at the box office despite mixed reviews. He also wrote the made-for-TV mafia drama Madso’s War. Think The Departed, but without the swearing, violence, DiCaprio, or Scorsese… actually, never mind. Don’t picture that.
Director Liebesman became known for scaring audiences with the shadow-heavy horror Darkness Falls, which somehow made the Tooth Fairy terrifying. He followed up with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre The Beginning, a prequel no one asked for, yet plenty of people still watched. After giving the Tooth Fairy and Leatherface their cinematic moments, Liebesman wanted a different flavor of horror, something like 28 Days Later, but with aliens instead of virus-infected humans infecting other humans in an infection cycle that… yeah, let’s move on.
The Real “Battle of Los Angeles”
Believe it or not, Battle: Los Angeles wasn’t entirely fiction. It was inspired by the real 1942 incident known as The Battle of Los Angeles. On February 25, 1942, just after 2 a.m., military radar detected an unidentified aircraft 120 miles off the L.A. coast. Reports of a Japanese plane crashing in Hollywood followed, and the military opened fire into the night sky. By morning? No wreckage, no confirmed planes, just confusion.
Authorities later admitted it was a false alarm, but reportedly arrested around 20 Japanese-Americans, accusing them of signaling enemy aircraft. Historians today chalk it up to wartime panic after Pearl Harbor and a submarine attack on Santa Barbara the day before. The actual culprit: a weather balloon.
But before we realize humanity absolutely learns nothing from history… back to the alien universe.
Setting the Tone and Training the Cast
After reading Bertolini’s script, Liebesman studied films like Black Hawk Down and Saving Private Ryan to capture that boots-on-the-ground, chaos-of-war feeling. To sell the realism, the actors had work to do.
Boot Camp
Marines at Camp Pendleton put the cast through a condensed but intense Marine-style boot camp. They woke at 5:30 a.m., trained with Senior Military Advisor Sergeant Major Jim Dever, learned Marine protocols, and handled real weapons (M4 Carbines, M16 rifles, but with blanks). They were asked not to “go full Rambo” in between takes.
The cast also lived in tents for five days—no phones, no showers, no clean clothes. A method-acting dream… or nightmare.
Sergeant Major Dever appears in the film, and real Camp Pendleton Marines were used as extras. As thanks, the base received an early screening.
Cast and Characters
Aaron Eckhart
Eckhart stars as Staff Sergeant Michael Nantz, a Marine carrying survivor’s guilt and a retirement plan. While the clichés are heavy, his performance brings intensity that elevates even the roughest dialogue. The man can make bad lines sound good.
Michelle Rodriguez
Rodriguez plays Tech Sergeant Elena Santos, a character added just a month before filming. She skipped some boot-camp training, which actually fit her role. She arrives around the 45-minute mark to explain alien tech and deliver exposition so the Marines don’t have to. Basically, she’s a walking Area 51 Wikipedia.
Michael Peña and Bridget Moynahan
They play civilians holed up with children, offering rare, much-needed emotional breaks from nonstop action.
The Marine Squad
Ne-Yo (in his second major film role), Noel Fisher, Will Rothhaar, Jim Parrack, and Ramon Rodriguez round out the squad and create a believable brotherhood.
The Aliens
The aliens don’t get as much screen time as expected. Mostly we see their ships blowing stuff up. When shown up close, they’re almost entirely CGI, except for one unfortunate alien dragged down a hallway for a gooey autopsy scene (because every alien movie needs slime).
Chris Bertolini originally envisioned aliens swarming like birds or fish but left specifics to the VFX team. Their designs changed constantly throughout production, which might explain why the aliens’ look is oddly hard to remember. Like Pokémon evolutions, but louder.
Filming, Injuries, and 3D That Never Happened
Despite its title, most of the film was shot in Louisiana, not Los Angeles, thanks to tax incentives. The team recreated L.A. streets there, since Battle: Baton Rouge doesn’t exactly scream blockbuster.
Aaron Eckhart was injured during a stunt; he slipped, fell seven feet, broke his upper arm, and nearly hit his head. Instead of halting production, he finished the scene and returned two days later. Marine energy activated.
The production considered 3D, but with all the handheld shots (under cars, underwater, inside explosions), it would’ve been sensory overload. Honestly, viewers were already dealing with more shaky cam than The Blair Witch Project.
Release, Box Office, and Critical Response
Battle: Los Angeles premiered on March 11, 2011, a nod to the Marine Corps’ 0311 Rifleman MOS code. It debuted at #1 with $35 million and eventually grossed $212 million worldwide on a $70 million budget. Not bad for a film that should’ve included free Dramamine with every ticket.
Critics? Not as enthusiastic.
Rotten Tomatoes: 37%
Audience score: 48%
IMDb: 5.7/10
Most critics praised the ambition but criticized the dialogue and predictability.
Roger Ebert’s Brutal Review
Roger Ebert gave it ½ star out of 4, calling it: “An insult to the words science, fiction, and the hyphen in science-fiction.”
He hated the alien designs, mocked the dialogue, and even said if your date liked the movie, you should reconsider the relationship. Yikes.
The Skyline Controversy
Sony filed a legal complaint against Skyline directors Greg and Colin Strause (who were also working on VFX for Battle: Los Angeles). Since they had access to scripts and storyboards, Sony worried they’d steal ideas.
After Skyline premiered, Sony dropped the complaint, finding no evidence of wrongdoing.
Disaster-movie déjà vu is nothing new. Just ask Volcano vs. Dante’s Peak or Armageddon vs. Deep Impact.
Legacy, 4K Release, and Possible Sequel
Battle: Los Angeles was one of the first films released in 4K, and critics universally agreed the visuals and sound design were incredible, even if they didn’t love the story.
Aaron Eckhart has said it was the toughest shoot of his career but also the most fun. He’s expressed interest in a sequel, maybe set in Paris. An alien-invasion version of MTV’s The Real World does sound kind of great.
The film shines in its grounded, documentary-style moments. But the shaky cam, repeated dialogue, and sudden jokes sometimes break tension rather than build it. Still, the cast delivers, and Eckhart stands out. If a sequel ever materializes, hopefully he returns.
And that, my friends, is what happened to Battle: Los Angeles.
A couple of previous episodes of this show can be seen below. For more, check out the JoBlo Horror Originals YouTube channel—and don’t forget to subscribe!
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