10-07-2025
Lights, camera, Indiana
Imagine a place where the red carpet is rolled out for every visitor. Where strangers greet you like neighbors. Where basketball is a way of life, not just a game.
It's not a city on the coast, or a Hollywood film set. It's a state often underestimated, but quietly resilient and proud. A place whose humble (but mighty) spirit shows up onscreen in movies like Hoosiers and Rudy, and in shows like Parks and Recreation and Stranger Things.
Welcome to Indiana — where hospitality is real, the bleachers are packed, and suddenly, all eyes are turned on "the crossroads of America.'
From sitcom settings to subtle wardrobe choices, Indiana is showing up more in movies, TV and books, and its residents are taking notice. While they're not ready to call it a full-blown pop culture takeover, there's a growing sense that the state is getting more screen time than usual.
'We're not trying to be L.A. or New York. We just do what we do best — we welcome people, we make them feel at home and we take the time to talk to visitors,' Indianapolis resident Dr. Amy Metheny, who's a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame, tells me. 'Indy knows exactly who we are, and we're proud of it.'
And how does Indiana make noise? First, through sports. Loud, loyal, show up no matter what sports.
Whether it's the Super Bowl, NCAA tournaments or the Olympic swim trials, Indianapolis knows how to host — and more importantly, how to make people feel included. Maybe it's that hometown-meets-heartland feel that makes it so appealing to visitors — and more recently, to Hollywood.
I set out to talk to some lifelong Hoosiers to see what the buzz is on the ground — and found that I'm not imagining things: Indiana's moment is real right now. But some feel the way it's being portrayed still needs a rewrite.
The increase in attention isn't lost on locals. Some, like Anne Ryder, believe Indiana is inching toward something bigger.
'I think we are kind of at a tipping point,' says Ryder, a former Indianapolis news anchor and current journalism professor at Indiana University. (She also happens to be my aunt.) 'There are almost two divisions of it. One is pop culture [related], but the big one is sports."
She's right, especially when it comes to national attention.
The Indianapolis Pacers just made it to the NBA Finals, with stars like Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner traveling to the Hoosier state to watch them face off against the Knicks in the run-up. Game 7 against the Oklahoma City Thunder was the most-watched NBA Finals in six years. Although the Pacers fell short, the viewership numbers surprised some, since both teams hail from so-called "small markets."
Indianapolis will host the NCAA Final Four in 2026 and 2029. This year, it's home to the WNBA All-Star Game, where league powerhouse Caitlin Clark has put the Indiana Fever in the national spotlight. And of course, there's the Indianapolis 500—still the largest single-day sporting event in the world. May's race drew 7.05 million viewers on Fox, the biggest audience since 2008.
"Pat McAfee, for instance, still does his show from here," Ryder says, referencing ESPN's hit The Pat McAfee Show. 'He chooses to live in Indiana. A lot of the [Indy] 500 drivers choose to live here, too. We're starting to get some mainstream recognition.'
Even fictional shows about sports have started calling Indiana home, the latest being Stick, Owen Wilson's new golf comedy series that's topped the Apple TV+ streaming charts and is set in Fort Wayne.
But beyond big games and big names, sports in Indiana have always meant something more.
Metheny says that sports here aren't just a pastime — they're a reflection of who Hoosiers are. 'The statement, 'In 49 states it's just basketball, but this is Indiana,' could not be more true,' she explains. It's more than a slogan, it's a way of life.
That way of life is defined not by glitz and glamour but by generosity.
"It's no secret that no one hosts a sporting event quite like Indy," she says. "It's because we truly welcome people."
Right now, no one embodies that Indiana spirit quite like Clark.
Since landing in Indianapolis as 2024's No. 1 WNBA draft pick, Clark hasn't just transformed the Indiana Fever — she's helped elevate the city's national profile.
Her games draw record-breaking viewership and crowds. Her presence has sparked a wave of 'Clark tourists' eager to experience the energy firsthand. Hotels fill, restaurants buzz and Hoosier hospitality kicks into high gear for fans coming from across the country just to see her play. Nike just got in on the excitement with a massive new ad in downtown Indy.
"Caitlin Clark's arrival to Indianapolis has brought millions of new eyes to the city in a way that has been hard to replicate," Griffin Gonzalez, a reporter for ABC's local affiliate WRTV Indianapolis, tells me. "Even the Pacers' recent trip to the NBA Finals doesn't garner as much viewership as Caitlin Clark and the Fever can every season."
As a journalist in the city, Gonzalez says he's personally met fans traveling from all over the U.S. to watch Clark.
"While chatting with these 'Clark tourists,' they often tell me how surprised they are with Indianapolis's cleanliness, friendliness and walkability," he explains. "All are traits that make the city what it has been for the past 20-plus years. That visibility and frequent conversation has opened people's eyes to the city and has made visitors more willing to come back for conventions, sporting events and anything else that Indianapolis plays host to over the coming months and years."
In other words, Clark's impact goes beyond the court. She's reshaping how outsiders view the city — drawing new visitors in, while leaving behind a lasting impression that may extend far beyond her rookie season.
Metheny, a Fever season ticket holder, has witnessed that impact up close. Every home game has become a destination, she tells me, with fans flying in from all over to witness the seen them asking for tips in online forums — where to stay, what to do, where to eat — and she's seen how quickly Hoosiers jump in to help.
For Metheny, Clark's arrival has only magnified what the city already does best: making people feel at home.
She believes this new spotlight will affirm what many already know — or at least have heard — about Indianapolis and its people: the hospitality is real and basketball is more than a game.
'The people of Indianapolis, and the state itself, are our greatest asset, and people will see that on a whole new scale," she says.
While Indiana's identity has long been rooted in sports, it also seems to be expanding its reach in pop culture.
The state recently introduced a film and media tax credit to lure more productions, offering a 20% base credit on in-state spending, with potential bonuses for hiring local talent or promoting Indiana onscreen. The incentive begins in Jan. 2026 and runs through July 2031 and allows unused credits to be sold, making it especially appealing to outside studios. While the $250,000 per-project cap is modest compared to other states like Georgia or New Mexico — both of which now host major studio productions — Indiana's message is clear: it wants in on the Hollywood action.
"I'm starting to see it more as well,' Ryder says, a feeling she says is shared among her friends. 'And it kind of makes me wonder if we're at a tipping point. Because we've always had that perception: 'Oh, they grow corn in Indiana.' But people really didn't know much about it. Now, I think we're on the map a little bit more.'
In My Mom, Jayne, actress Mariska Hargitay's recent documentary about her mother Jayne Mansfield, she references her father Mickey Hargitay's bodybuilding legacy, including his time as Mr. Indianapolis and later Mr. Universe. Jesse Eisenberg's Oscar-winning 2024 film A Real Pain features his character proudly sporting an Indiana University hat, a nod to the actor's real-life ties to Bloomington. At least some of Scream 7 will take place in a small Indiana town. And Emily Henry's latest novel Great Big Beautiful Life — a Reese's Book Club pick and the June read in my own book club — features a main character constantly repping a Purdue shirt.
They're subtle references, but they're adding up. And for a state that's long been cast as flyover country, even the smallest shout-outs can feel like a win in terms of visibility.
But not everyone sees all portrayals as celebratory. Both Ryder and Gonzalez tell me that while Indiana may be getting more screen time, it's not always an accurate depiction.
Too often, Gonzalez says, portrayals rely on tired stereotypes or outdated assumptions. They rarely capture the energy of Indiana's cities or the diversity of its communities. Instead, they tend to focus on small towns, cornfields and rural backdrops as if that's the whole story. The tiniest example that irks him? In Stick, one character drives around with a front license plate, despite the fact that Indiana doesn't require them.
To locals, these kinds of details aren't just oversights. They're signs that the people shaping these portrayals often have little real knowledge of the state at all.
Metheny sees it a little differently. She feels that, for the most part, Indiana is portrayed fairly accurately — especially when it comes to depictions of small-town life and close-knit communities. And when it comes to hospitality? The "welcoming" reputation is spot-on.
Still, she takes issue with how Indianapolis is often framed in national sports conversations. Yes, it's a smaller market compared to cities like Los Angeles or New York, she says — but that doesn't mean it lacks culture. "I cannot speak to our nightlife," she jokes.
Like the team in Hoosiers, the state has always shown up with heart. Now, it's finally getting a little more of the spotlight, too. And it's ready to shine.
