Why This Utah Cabin Was the Perfect Setting for the Movie “Mountainhead”

In his film "Mountainhead," available on Max, director Jesse Armstrong delivers a satire of the "tech bros," the tycoons of Silicon Valley. To stage their mountain vacation, he spent a long time searching for the perfect setting: an infinitely luxurious but not flashy chalet. A guided tour with the "New York Times."

It was in Deer Valley, Utah, in one of the most exclusive resorts in the United States, that the “Mountainhead” team found the perfect chalet to serve as the setting for the film. Surface area: 2,000 m². Estimated price: €57 million. Photo: HBO

When Paul Eskenazi went in search of a setting for Mountainhead , this satirical film about a group of tech tycoons by Jesse Armstrong, creator of the series Succession [available in France on Amazon Prime Video] , he already had a very specific objective in mind.

Where Succession, on which Eskenazi also worked, indulges in luxury that's obvious to those who can spot the signs, Mountainhead had to place its lavish protagonists in a grandiose but relatively understated setting. The film's heroes are too rich for a flashy villa, and the director couldn't settle for any luxury residence he came across.

Armstrong and Eskenazi specialize in depicting the everyday lives of the ultra-rich—with all its subtle hallmarks of social standing. It's not just about filming private jets and gigantic mansions, but also about showing the power struggles that drive the richest 1%. For there is a hierarchy within this category, based on personal wealth—the kind of subtle distinction that only insiders can spot, much like the difference between two models of jet.

By discovering

Calum Marsh

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