Florida Keys home where ‘True Lies’ was filmed is now for sale

A sprawling waterfront estate in the Florida Keys that was the site of the “Crimson Jihad” terrorist compound in the movie True Lies is now on the market.

Located at 16750 Old State Road, on Sugarloaf Key, the home was built in 1959 and is locally known as Blue Water Lagoon. But the property is arguably best known for its prominent cameo in director James Cameron’s 1994 action comedy starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Bill Paxton and Tia Carrere.

About a third of True Lies was shot in Florida, specifically the Keys and Miami.

Some of the more memorable scenes include once in which Cameron blew up the Seven Mile Bridge (filmed at the Overseas Highway in Key Largo), or when Schwarzenegger says “You’re fired,” and shoots a missile with the main antagonist attached to it at a terrorist helicopter (filmed at the Colonial Bank Centre in downtown Miami).

However, Blue Water Lagoon also had some great scenes.

In 1993, the previous owners were approached by Cameron to use the home and an adjacent lot as a production site, according to listing agents. The director ended up building an entire terrorist compound set on the property. He also set up food tents and trailers for the crew, as well as a dedicated gym tent for Schwarzenegger to stay cut between scenes.

The compound was where Schwarzenegger’s character is drugged with truth serum and confesses to his spouse, played by Jamie Lee Curtis, that he is in fact not a software salesman but a secret agent. He then tells the torturer how he’s going to kill him and escape. “And what makes you think you can do all that?” asks the torturer. “You know my handcuffs? I’ve picked them,” responds Schwarzenegger.

SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM TO SEE MORE BEHIND-THE-SCENES PHOTOS FROM 1993.

Shortly after this exchange and a massive body count, the home was blown up with a nuclear warhead.

Luckily, it was not actually destroyed. (Movie magic!) Today, the 5,208-square-foot home sits on 2.3-acre lot. There are six bedrooms and six bathrooms, and it also features a private marina with two boat lifts and a boat ramp, an outdoor cabana bar, a zero-entry pool, an observation deck, staff quarters and more.

If you’d like to own a piece of Hollywood history, the estate is currently asking $7,995,000, and the listing agents are Jenna Stauffer and Kim Bagnell Thaler of Ocean Sotheby’s International Realty.

This story first appeared in our sister publication Creative Loafing Tampa Bay.