Taj Mahal

Hollywood disaster movies usually opt for Empire State Building or Statue of Liberty but in “Pixels,” Taj Mahal is the first iconic structure to get destroyed.

The comedy film revolves around a bunch of former arcade game champions who get a chance to save the world when aliens misinterpret video games footage that NASA sent them and attack the Earth using these games as their models.

Director Chris Columbus said he had a certain image while designing the special effects of the comedy film and that included Taj Mahal.

“When these pixelized characters come to life, there is certain edge to them. They are lit from within and they are hauntingly beautiful in a weird sort of way. It is not normal destruction, it is insanely pixelized. Taj Mahal seemed like the perfect place to first see that,” Columbus told PTI in an interview during the recent Summer of Sony press event in Cancun, Mexico.

“It is the first real iconic thing to get destroyed in the film. There is a destruction scene prior to that but with Taj Mahal, you see that it is actually a game breakout. I had this visual image while designing these effects. It had nothing to do whether it was India or anywhere else. I just thought it will look really cool and awesome,” he said.

The movie, starring Adam Sandler, Josh Gad, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Monaghan, is in theaters now.