Parisian transit authorities maintain a fully functional ghost station called Porte des Lilas specifically for production companies to shoot movies and commercials without disrupting actual commuters.

A closer look

Parisian transit authorities maintain a fully functional ghost station called Porte des Lilas specifically for production companies to shoot movies and commercials without disrupting actual commuters. This secret subterranean set looks identical to a regular Paris Metro stop but is entirely disconnected from the daily chaos of the public network. Film crews can rent it out for thousands of euros per day to stage glamorous, dramatic sequences featuring impeccably dressed actors riding sparkling clean subway cars. This allows Hollywood to perpetuate the massive lie that taking public transportation in a major European capital is a romantic, aesthetically pleasing experience rather than a sweaty, overcrowded battle for personal space. Real commuters are left upstairs dealing with mysterious odors and delayed trains while movie stars pretend to casually read philosophy books on a sanitized underground set funded by the crushing reality of urban transit budgets