Oscars Are Leaving the Dolby

The Academy Awards ceremony is moving, not just from TV to YouTube, but to a new theater. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Thursday that beginning in 2029, the Oscars will take place at the Peacock Theater at LA LIVE in downtown Los Angeles instead of the current Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Venue operator AEG joined the announcement of a 10-year deal that ends the program's run at the Dolby, which began in 2002, per the Hollywood Reporter. The Peacock already hosts the Primetime Emmy Awards.

The Peacock is a new host, but the Oscars were held downtown for years, the Los Angeles Times points out, at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and the Shrine Auditorium. Having the event at the Peacock, previously known as the Nokia Theatre and Microsoft Theater, will give the academy access to the adjacent JW Marriott hotel, which has a ballroom, and other nearby hotels. The theater has a seating capacity of about 7,000, twice the Dolby's, per the AP. Its plaza also is larger. As part of the arrangement, AEG plans extensive upgrades to the Peacock, including new stage, sound and lighting systems, and renovations to lobbies, backstage areas, and other production-critical spaces.

The Dolby, 9 miles away, also had been designed—by the academy—with the idea of keeping the annual ceremony. Early designs for the Peacock suggest the program won't look too different to viewers, per the Times, retaining a similar sweeping look—just bigger. But attendees will no longer be able to walk outside on onto the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The 2029 ceremony, the Oscars' 101st edition, is also set to be the first to stream on YouTube under a separate agreement.