The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Finally Opens This December in Los Angeles

Academy Museum of Motion Pictures

After first being announced eight years ago, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will finally open this year on December 14, 2020. The news was announced during the 92nd Academy Awards last night by Tom Hanks, who is a museum trustee and co-chair of the Academy Museum campaign. If you want a sneak peek of what the museum will offer, keep reading below.

The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures Opening Date

Along with the announcement from Tom Hanks, The Academy debuted the short 10-second commercial above which quickly shows off some teases of what museum attendees will see. This includes a collection of items from Hollywood history that will include items like the original Steadicam, Bela Lugosi’s cape from Dracula (1931), the stone tablets from The Ten Commandments (1956), and special effects molds created by Dick Smith for movies like The Godfather (1972) and The Exorcist (1973).

Of course, since this is a museum of motion pictures, it will also have a couple theaters. There will be the 1,000-seat David Geffen Theater that will have the ability to screen 35mm, 70mm, digital laser and nitrate prints. Plus, there’s the 288-seat Ted Mann Theater (seen above), which will be used for more niche retrospectives for filmmakers like Federico Fellini and Hayao Miyazaki.

Other accents include the glass Barbra Streisand Bridge, which will take crowds from the concrete 1939 building to architect Renzo Piano’s spherical glass dome structure, providing picturesque views of the Hollywood Hills.

Supposedly, the museum won’t shy away from the more unsavory sides of Hollywood over the years. Doris Berger, head of curatorial affairs, recently told THR, “It’s important for us to…not shy away from difficult moments in film history. That includes people who were excluded from Hollywood.” That likely means they won’t be excluding the contributions of people like Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Bryan Singer and other prominent talents who have been accused of sexual misconduct in recent years. But that doesn’t mean they’ll be eagerly celebrated either.

Academy Museum director Bill Kramer offered up this in a statement (via THR):

“We cannot wait to welcome the whole world to the Academy Museum. When our doors open on Dec. 14, our thrilling combination of exhibitions, screenings, and public and educational programs will create unparalleled experiences for movie lovers everywhere.”

Initially projected to open in 2017, the museum is one of the most anticipated additions to Hollywood in recent memory, and we can’t wait to check it out later this year. You can learn more about what the museum will offer and get a better look in side it at The Hollywood Reporter.

Here’s Tom Hanks introducing the museum from the Academy Awards last night: