Most of Weird Science (1985) was filmed in the Chicago suburbs in Illinois, with some key scenes shot in Southern California.

Main short answer

  • The movie is set in the fictional town of Shermer, Illinois, but was primarily filmed in and around Chicago’s North Shore suburbs such as Highland Park , Skokie , Winnetka , and Northbrook , plus some locations in the Los Angeles area.

Key filming locations

  • Highland Park, Illinois – Used for the boys’ neighborhood; several house exteriors (including Wyatt’s and Gary’s) and the downtown car‑chase sequence were filmed on local streets like St. John’s Avenue and Central Avenue.
  • Skokie, Illinois – Niles East High School in Skokie was used as “Shermer High School” (now demolished).
  • Winnetka, Illinois – New Trier Township High School provided exterior shots for the high school scenes, including Lisa’s gym‑teacher appearance.
  • Northbrook, Illinois – The mall scenes, including Lisa waiting in the parking lot and the boys’ humiliation at the hands of the jocks, were filmed at Northbrook Court Mall.
  • Bell, California – The small gymnasium at Bell High School was used for the opening and closing gym scenes.
  • Universal City / Los Angeles area – Some bar/nightlife material and studio work were done at Universal Studios Hollywood and other Los Angeles–area locations.

Mini timeline / production context

  • Filming was planned to start in late September 1984 in Skokie, Illinois, and then shifted into full swing in October 1984 around the Chicago area and Northbrook Court Mall, with additional work in California.

So if you’re visiting: the core answer to “where was Weird Science filmed?” is the Chicago North Shore suburbs (Highland Park, Skokie, Winnetka, Northbrook) plus a handful of Los Angeles–area spots like Bell High School and Universal Studios.

TL;DR: Weird Science was filmed mainly in Chicago’s North Shore suburbs in Illinois, with some gym, bar, and studio scenes filmed around Los Angeles, California.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.