By Elishya Perera
(CWBN)_ The new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures has once again pushed back its opening date to September 30, 2021, due to concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The postponement knocks down plans to open the museum on April 30, near the same time as the Academy Awards ceremony which is scheduled to be held on April 25. “Our team has been working incredibly hard toward an April opening, and we have been on track to maintain that date. But, with the sharp increase in COVID-19 infections, museums remaining closed, and a stay-at-home order still in place for the foreseeable future in Los Angeles, it would be irresponsible to open this spring,” museum director and president Bill Kramer said.
However, this is not the first time the museum had to postpone the opening date, as it was initially scheduled to open on December 14 this year, but was delayed owing to the pandemic.
Nevertheless, the chair of the museum’s board of trustees, Ted Sarandos, noted that despite the many challenges of 2020, the museum has accomplished a great deal this year. “[…]we are fortunate to have one of the world’s most exciting new cultural institutions ready to go. Now it’s just a matter of patience, for all of us, as we look ahead to opening our doors on September 30,” he said.
The Oscars Academy Museum recently passed a major milestone by exceeding its pre-opening fundraising campaign goal of $388 million. The new museum designed by Renzo Piano was first announced in 2021 with plans to open in 2017. Located at the corner of Wilshire Blvd. and Fairfax Ave on Museum Row, the new museum would restore the historic Saban Building, formerly known as the May Company Building (1939).
