By Blessing Nweke
The Academy Awards will leave their longtime home in Hollywood and relocate to a new venue in central Los Angeles beginning in 2029, marking a significant shift for the globally watched film ceremony. The awards will move from the Dolby Theatre to the larger Peacock Theater, which offers greater seating capacity and modern infrastructure.
The transition coincides with another major change: the Oscars telecast will move from traditional broadcast television to streaming, airing live and free on YouTube starting the same year. For decades, the ceremony has been broadcast on ABC.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said the relocation is part of a long-term partnership with AEG, which owns the LA Live complex. The agreement will keep the Oscars at the new venue through 2039.
Todd Goldstein, AEG’s chief revenue officer, said LA Live was “built to host the moments that define culture,” promising an upgraded experience for audiences. Academy CEO Bill Kramer and president Lynette Howell Taylor praised AEG’s expertise in running technologically advanced venues.
Since 2002, the Oscars have been held at the Dolby Theatre, located along the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The move shifts the ceremony roughly eight miles away from the traditional Hollywood setting.
However, the relocation also echoes the Oscars’ earlier history, when ceremonies were staged in central Los Angeles venues such as the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and the Shrine Auditorium.
The 2028 ceremony, marking the Oscars’ centennial, will remain at the Dolby Theatre before the transition takes effect the following year.
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