Oscars Moving to Peacock Theater in Downtown Los Angeles Starting 2029

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which built the Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard expressly as a permanent Oscars home, announced Thursday it is abandoning that 26-year arrangement for a new 10-year residency at the Peacock Theater at L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles.

The ceremony will relocate from the Dolby Theatre, its home since 2002, to the Peacock Theater at L.A. LIVE, the home of the Primetime Emmy Awards since 2008, beginning in 2029. The multiyear partnership runs from the 101st ceremony in 2029 through 2039.

The departure is a striking one: the Dolby was developed by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences itself, expressly as a home for the Oscars. The ceremony has been held there since 2002, with the exception of a COVID-driven downsized show at Union Station in 2021, giving the Dolby a run unmatched by any previous Oscars venue.

Significantly more people will be able to attend under the new arrangement: the Peacock Theater currently seats 7,100, compared with the Dolby Theatre's 3,400. L.A. LIVE, the 23-acre, 4-million-square-foot sports and entertainment district, recently expanded its plaza, which will host the Oscars' red carpet arrivals and activities.

As part of the partnership, AEG will undertake comprehensive enhancements to the theater, including upgrades to its stage, sound and lighting systems, lobbies, backstage facilities and additional production-critical areas, and will collaborate closely with the Academy to incorporate bespoke design elements needed to accommodate the ceremony.

Academy CEO Bill Kramer and Academy president Lynette Howell Taylor issued a joint statement praising the deal. "We are thrilled to partner with a global powerhouse like AEG," they said. "Their track record for building and operating technologically sophisticated live performance venues is unrivaled. For the 101st Oscars and beyond, the Academy looks forward to closely collaborating with AEG to make L.A. Live the perfect backdrop for our global celebration of cinema, both for our live in-theater audience and for film fans around the world." AEG chief revenue officer Todd Goldstein added: "L.A. Live was built to host the moments that define culture, and there is no greater global stage than the Oscars. We're proud to partner with the Academy to reimagine what the Oscars can look and feel like in the years ahead."

The move, which runs through 2039, coincides with the telecast's departure from ABC after a decades-long run on the broadcast network. L.A. LIVE will be the first venue to host the Oscars when the telecast moves to YouTube via an exclusive global rights deal with the Academy, which also begins in 2029.

The Peacock Theater, previously known as the Nokia Theatre and Microsoft Theater, opened in 2007 as the then-Staples Center site expanded to become the L.A. LIVE entertainment complex. The theater has hosted the Emmy Awards nearly every year since 2008 and, in recent years, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. The surrounding complex includes hotels such as the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott, restaurants, clubs and numerous hospitality spaces.

There is one logistical caveat worth noting: the Peacock Theater's naming rights come up for grabs in 2028, meaning the venue may carry a different name by the time the first Oscars ceremony takes place there.

The move represents a return downtown for the Oscars, which were held at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for many years starting in 1969 and later at the Shrine Auditorium before relocating to Hollywood in 2002. The Dolby Theatre will continue hosting the ceremony through the 100th Academy Awards in 2028 before the transition is complete.