The Wizard of Oz at Sphere is a 2025 American 4D film. Created specifically to be screened at Sphere in the Las Vegas Valley on the venue's 160,000 square-foot video screen at 16K resolution, it is an "immersive" version of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer's 1939 musicalfantasy filmThe Wizard of Oz. The film's visuals and soundtrack were remastered and enhanced to fit the venue's capabilities, and multi-sensory effects were added to immerse audiences in the film. It is the third film to be screened at the venue under the "Sphere Experience" program, following Darren Aronofsky's 2023 documentary Postcard from Earth and the 2024 concert film V-U2 that depicts U2's residency at Sphere. The Wizard of Oz at Sphere began screening on August 28, 2025, and is scheduled to run until March 31, 2026.
As guests enter the Sphere's atrium, the room is lit and designed to resemble sepia-toned Kansas as depicted in the film's opening scenes. Replicas of Professor Marvel's cart and the Wizard's hot air balloon, as well as glass-case displays showcasing historical prints of L. Frank Baum's original Oz books and a pair of ruby slippers from the late Debbie Reynolds' personal collection are showcased. The audience is then led into the auditorium 45 minutes before showtime.[3][4]
As the audience is seated, the Sphere's screen displays a sepia-tinted image of a large modern-day auditorium resembling that of Radio City Music Hall in New York City. At showtime, the sound of an orchestra tuning up and a conductor's baton can be heard, signaling that the film is about to begin as the lights dim. The auditorium's curtains then rise up on cue with the film's opening theme to reveal the MGM "Leo the Lion" logo (with the Cowardly Lion taking Leo's place inside the filmstrip circle and roaring once), segueing right into the opening credits sequence whose cloud background fills the entire screen, followed by the film itself. Highlights of the film experience include wind, fog and leaves blowing around the auditorium during the tornado scene, which now places the audience inside its funnel, foam-made apples falling from the ceiling when Dorothy and Scarecrow deal with the angry Apple Tree, snow falling onto the audience when Glinda the Good Witch of the North lifts the spell on the poison poppies, pyrotechnics during the scenes in the Wizard's throne room, and life-size flying monkeys flying into the audience through the use of UAV technology. After Dorothy's final line ("Oh, Auntie Em. There's no place like home!") and the original film's "The End" card and cast list, an added closing credits sequence crediting all those who worked on the film experience spread across the screen.[3][5]
Atrium post-show
At the conclusion of the film, the audience is led out of the auditorium and back into the atrium, now lit and designed to resemble the Emerald City in Technicolor. They are then directed by the Wizard's Guard towards a life-sized replica of the Wizard's throne room (complete with a projected motion-capture image of his ghostly green head) where guests interact with him.[6]
In 2024, an "immersive" version of the film was announced to be screening at Sphere in the Las Vegas Valley beginning on August 28, 2025. It is produced by Sphere Entertainment and Jane Rosenthal in collaboration with Google, Warner Bros., and VFX studio Magnopus. Artificial intelligence provided by Google AI was used to upscale the video resolution for the venue's 16K resolution screen and, using the Vet 2 and Imagen 3 Gemini models, generate additional imagery to expand shots beyond what was originally in frame. An estimated 1.2 petabytes of data were processed for the project. Traditional CGI visual effects were also employed by Crafty Apes, Digital Domain, Gradient Effects, Haymaker VFX and Zoic Studios for the tornado scene and a recreation of the Wizard's ghostly green head during his throne room scenes. Live multi-sensory effects such as flashing lights, haptics, wind, fog and scents will be employed during screenings of the film. Jennifer Lame served as editor, along with Ben Grossmann as visual effects specialist, Paul Freeman as principal audio artist and Zack Winokur as creative director.[7][8][9][10][11][12] The film's soundtrack was also remastered to fit the Sphere's immersive sound system, in addition to having the entire score re-recorded with an 80-piece orchestra under the direction of David Newman, on the same scoring stage where it was originally recorded. The changes made to select sequences resulted in the film's runtime also being shortened to 75 minutes from the original 101 minutes.[13] Sphere Entertainment Executive Chairman and CEO James L. Dolan commented, "The original kind of dwelled on a few things that were somewhat superfluous." He added, "Everything you love about the movie, I guarantee, is in the movie." Among the cut material was the musical number "If I Were King of the Forest," sung by the Cowardly Lion as he, Scarecrow, Tin Man, Dorothy and Toto wait to see the Wizard outside his palace in the original film.[14][15][2] Dolan himself, along with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, make "two-second cameos" as two unidentifiable Munchkins during the Munchkinland sequence.[2]
Release and marketing
Promotions for the film on the exterior of Sphere
Tickets went on sale on June 10, 2025, coinciding with Judy Garland's 103rd birthday. As part of the experience, a 50-foot-long and 22-foot-tall replica of the legs of the Wicked Witch of the East wearing the ruby slippers was installed onto the exterior of the Sphere, suggesting that the "venue has landed on top of her."[16] As part of the promotional campaign, a viral marketing stunt involving the phrase "Surrender Dorothy" being skywritten above Long Beach, California and Robert Moses State Park in Fire Island, New York took place over the Fourth of July weekend, with the help of the Farmingdale-based Skytypers Air Show Team.[17]The Venetian Las Vegas, which adjoins Sphere, also promoted the film with a display in the resort's Waterfall Atrium that was filled with 5,000 vibrant silk poppies. The cafeteria behind it showcased themed décor and displays previewing the film's merchandise.[18] By August 12, 2025, Sphere reported that over 120,000 tickets were sold for screenings of the film.[19]
On May 28, 2025, Rosenthal believed that if The Wizard of Oz proves to be a success at Sphere, that it could lead to more immersive versions of other films being screened at the venue, saying: "It's a template for our industry ... a way for us to go back and look at films through the eyes of the director and the time in which they were made. We hope to do other films, but we don't know what those are."[13] On July 27, 2025, Lorna Luft gave her thoughts on the immersive version of the film on CBS News Sunday Morning, saying that her mother would approve of how the film was handled and that she looked forward to seeing a new generation of fans and audiences introduced to the film through this format.[20]
Ahead of the film's premiere, the use of AI to enhance the film for Sphere's capabilities was not met with unanimous favor from the public, given ongoing societal and governmental concerns regarding the regulation of AI in filmmaking. In response to the criticism, Grossman remarked: "I don't think you understand how artists work, because for 30 years, I've been working for famous Hollywood filmmakers who come to me with another artist's work and say, 'See this picture from this movie? We want to do something like that'... The original movie already exists. We don't have to improve it."[21]
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