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{{Short description|Fictional country used by Steven E. de Souza}}
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'''Val Verde''' is a [[fictional country]] or city used by Hollywood writer and producer [[Steven E. de Souza]] when his stories require a South or Central American locale that will not cause legal or diplomatic problems.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Baldwin |first=Daniel |title=Val Verde: Exploring Fox's Secret $5 Billion Cinematic Universe |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielbaldwin/2016/03/01/viva-val-verde-verse-exploring-foxs-secret-5-billion-cinematic-universe/ |access-date=2021-01-14 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref> The location first appeared in his 1985 film ''[[Commando (1985 film)|Commando]]''.
==Appearances==
* ''[[Commando (1985 film)|Commando]]'' (1985), Arius ([[Dan Hedaya]]) is the former ruler of Val Verde and sends John Matrix ([[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]) to kill the current president but he escapes en route.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fast-rewind.com/commando.htm |title=Commando |publisher=fast-rewind.com |date=1985-10-04 |
* ''[[Supercarrier (TV series)|Supercarrier]]'', Episode 5 "Rest and Revolution" (1988) the
* ''[[Adventure Inc.]]'' (2003), Episode 10 of Season 1 was titled "Plague Ship of Val Verde".<ref>{{
* ''[[Sheena, Queen of the Jungle|Sheena]]'' (2015). a [[Devil's Due Publishing|Devil's Due]] [[comic book]], is set in Val Verde.
Outside of de Souza's own work, there are other appearances, either linked by shared personnel, or as a direct reference. For example:
▲It has appeared in a number of films and television programs:
* De Souza believes that ''[[Predator (film)|Predator]]'' takes place in Val Verde.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/predator-complete-history/|title=Predator: The Complete History|first=Owen|last=Williams|website=Empire|date=January 2012}}</ref> ''Predator'', like ''Commando'', was produced by [[Joel Silver]] and starred Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, in ''[[Predators (film)|Predators]]'' (2010), Isabelle ([[Alice Braga]]) states that the events of the original film took place in [[Guatemala]], though part of the film's first act takes place in another unnamed country. The ''Predator'' novelization by [[Paul Monette]] also places the events in Guatemala, while [[Mark Verheiden]]'s comics for [[Dark Horse Comics|Dark Horse]] specify Colombia.
* In the 2020 video game ''[[Predator:_Hunting_Grounds]]'', the events of the film are explicitly said to have taken place "over the border" in Val Verde, including in [[Downloadable_content|DLC]] audio logs voiced by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
* ''[[Broforce]]'', a 2015 video game, which has characters that parody action heroes like John Matrix from ''Commando'' (as well as Dirty Harry, John Rambo, etc.), uses Val Verde as one of its settings.
* Val Verde appears in the anime ''[[Symphogear]]'' (2012). It is part of the backstory of Chris Yukine, where she lost her parents to war and was captured and enslaved for six years, before being rescued by the [[United Nations]]. The fourth season, ''Symphogear AXZ'' (2017), features the main characters visiting Val Verde as a key part of the season's plot arc, where Chris recalls her past.
* The film ''Jurassic Attack'' (2013) takes place entirely in Val Verde.
* Val Verde appears in the horror film ''The Theta Girl'' (2017). In a flashback sequence, the Papa Shogun character recalls discovering a hallucinogenic compound in the slime of an indigenous ground toad found in "this shit-hole country of Val Verde."
* Val Verde appears in the TV show ''[[NCIS (TV series)|NCIS]]'' ("Rendezvous", Season 14, Episode 24, 2017) as a remote part of Paraguay.
* Val Verde is one of the settings of the 2018 film ''[[Commando Ninja]]''.
* Part of [[Hank Green]]'s 2020 novel ''[[A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor]]'' is set in Val Verde.<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-a-beautifully-foolish-endeavor/|title=A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor Summary|language=en}}</ref>
* The podcast Action Boyz, a comedy podcast that focuses on action movies and stars [[Jon Gabrus]], Ben Rodgers, and Ryan Stanger refers to their studio as Val Verde.
* In ''[[Contra (series)|Contra: Operation Galuga]]'', when encountering Beowulf at the ruins, Beowulf tells the team that they had met once before, at Val Verde.
* The game ''Breezer'' takes place in Val Verde, with 'Land For Sale' signs branded as 'Val Verde Estates'
==Origin==
▲*''[[Commando (film)|Commando]]'' (1985), Arius ([[Dan Hedaya]]) is the former ruler of Val Verde and sends John Matrix ([[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]) to kill the current president but he escapes en route.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fast-rewind.com/commando.htm |title=Commando |publisher=fast-rewind.com |date=1985-10-04 |accessdate=2011-07-20}}</ref> In the movie, the country is 11 hours flight from Los Angeles International Airport, which places it approximately 5500 miles from California and is likely to be near Chile, Paraguay or Brazil.
▲*''[[Supercarrier (TV series)|Supercarrier]]'' (1988) the ''USS Georgetown'' commanded by Capt. Henry K. 'Hank' Madigan ([[Dale Dye]]) docks in Val Verde just as civil war breaks out.
▲*''[[Die Hard 2]]'' (1990), General Ramon Esperanza ([[Franco Nero]]) is from Val Verde.
▲*''[[Adventure Inc.]]'' (2003), Episode 10 of Season 1 was titled "Plague Ship of Val Verde".<ref>{{imdb episode|0505574|Plague Ship of Val Verde}}</ref>
Steven de Souza
▲Steven de Souza has also set the [[Devil's Due Publishing|Devil's Due]] [[comic book]] ''[[Sheena, Queen of the Jungle|Sheena]]'' in Val Verde and described his reason for using it:<ref>[http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=12268 Return of the Queen: de Souza Talks "Sheena"], [[Comic Book Resources]], January 7, 2008</ref>
{{cquote|It's something like Guyana, a country which encompasses lush Caribbean resorts popular with tourists, an unexplored mysterious rainforest, and a mix of Anglo, Spanish, African, Creole and indigenous cultures. This is a country of the imagination I've used in several films and TV programs, which I thought was my little inside baseball joke, but Eric Lichtenfield, the author of 'Actions Speak Louder,' recently sent me a Wikipedia page on it! Seriously, my Dad's family is from that part of the world and it's something I can write about with some familiarity.}}
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==Portrayal==
Val Verde has principally been used as a plot device or location in place of real [[Latin American]] countries in action and adventure movies, as a particular result of the United States' rocky relations with many nations in the region during the 1980s.
When glimpsed in ''Commando'', it appears to be a poor nation, where [[subsistence agriculture]] (i.e., livestock) is side-by-side with military propaganda and constant military presence. Inhabitants appear poor but happy, and there is evidence of a trade embargo reminiscent of that placed on [[Cuba]] in the presence of battered but functional
==Locations==
As well as studio shots, other locations have been used to portray Val Verde on film:
* The entrance to [[Long Beach Airport]]'s passenger terminal was used for Val Verde's main airport in ''Commando''.
* [[San Pedro, California]], was used for the port of Val Verde on ''Supercarrier'', while [[Valencia, California]], stood in for the countryside.
* [[Puerto Vallarta]]
==Legacy==
The spider genus ''[[Predatoroonops]]''
▲The ''[[Predatoroonops]]'' genus of spiders, named after the spiders' similarity to the [[Predator (alien)|Predator himself]], has a species named ''Predatoroonops valverde''.<ref name=amnh>Brescovit, Bonaldo, Santos, Ott & Rheims, 2012 : ''[http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/handle/2246/6186 The Brazilian goblin spiders of the new genus Predatoroonops (Araneae, Oonopidae).]'' Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, n. 370, pp. 29-31. Page accessed on January 12, 2013</ref>
==See also==
* [[List of fictional countries]]
* [[Banana republic]]
* [[555 (telephone number)]]
* [[Oceanic Airlines]]
==Notes==
{{Reflist}}
{{
{{Fictional countries}}
[[Category:
[[Category:Predator (franchise)]]
[[Category:Fictional South American countries]]
[[Category:Fictional elements introduced in 1985]]
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