The Wizard of Oz at Sphere

Plot

Upon entering the Sphere's atrium, guests encounter a sepia-toned Kansas setting with replicas of Professor Marvel's cart and the Wizard's hot air balloon, plus displays of L. Frank Baum's original Oz books and ruby slippers from Debbie Reynolds' collection. The audience is seated 45 minutes before showtime, facing a sepia image of a modern auditorium resembling Radio City Music Hall. At showtime, an orchestra tuning up and a conductor's baton are heard, the lights dim, and curtains rise to reveal the MGM logo with the Cowardly Lion replacing Leo. The opening credits fill the screen with clouds.

During the tornado scene, wind, fog, and leaves blow through the auditorium, placing the audience inside the funnel. Butterflies fly across the theatre during the first Oz scenes, foam apples fall from the ceiling during the Apple Tree encounter, snow falls during Glinda's poppy spell, pyrotechnics occur in the Wizard's throne room, and life-size flying monkeys use UAV technology to fly into the audience. After Dorothy's final line and the original film's end card, a closing credits sequence for the Sphere version appears. After the film, the atrium is lit and designed like the Emerald City in Technicolor, and guests are directed to a life-sized replica of the Wizard's throne room with a projected motion-capture image of his ghostly green head.

Development

Announced in 2024, the immersive version was produced by Sphere Entertainment and Jane Rosenthal with Google, Warner Bros., and VFX studio Magnopus. Google AI upscaled video to 16K resolution and used Veo 2 and Imagen 3 Gemini models to generate additional imagery expanding shots beyond the original frame. Traditional CGI was employed by Crafty Apes, Digital Domain, Gradient Effects, Haymaker VFX and Zoic Studios for the tornado scene and the Wizard's ghostly green head.

Live multi-sensory effects include flashing lights, haptics, wind, fog and scents. Jennifer Lame served as editor, Ben Grossmann as visual effects specialist, Paul Freeman as principal audio artist and Zack Winokur as creative director. The soundtrack was remastered for Sphere's immersive sound system, and the entire score was re-recorded with an 80-piece orchestra under David Newman on the original scoring stage, preserving Herbert Stothart's 1939 compositions.

The runtime was shortened to 75 minutes from the original 101 minutes; Sphere Entertainment Executive Chairman and CEO James L. Dolan commented that the original dwelled on superfluous elements. Cut material includes the musical number 'If I Were King of the Forest.' Dolan and Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav make two-second cameos as sailors in the tornado sequence.

Release and marketing

Tickets for the experience first became available on June 10, 2025, which also happened to be what would have been Judy Garland’s 103rd birthday. To make the venue feel like part of the story, a giant set of the Wicked Witch of the East’s legs—50 feet long and 22 feet tall, complete with ruby slippers—was attached to the outside of the Sphere, as if the building had crushed her. Over the Fourth of July weekend, the phrase “Surrender Dorothy” was skywritten above Long Beach, California, and Robert Moses State Park in New York, thanks to the Farmingdale-based Skytypers Air Show Team. The adjacent Venetian Las Vegas got in on the act too, filling its Waterfall Atrium with 5,000 bright silk poppies and decorating the nearby cafeteria with themed displays and merchandise previews.

By August 12, 2025, more than 120,000 tickets had been sold. The world premiere drew a crowd that included Lorna Luft, Skylar Astin, Rosanna Arquette, Kris Jenner, T Bone Burnett, Edie Falco, Joe Manganiello, Zahn McClarnon, Oz historian Ryan Jay, and Wicked stars Jessica Vosk and Marissa Bode. Dolan introduced the film in person, and he, Rosenthal, Sphere Entertainment COO Jennifer Koester, and other executives all dressed as characters from the movie. On November 7, 2025, a soundtrack came out featuring an a cappella version of “Over the Rainbow” sung by Judy Garland.

Reception and impact

On May 28, 2025, Rosenthal stated that if The Wizard of Oz proves successful at Sphere, it could lead to more immersive versions of other films, calling it a template for the industry. On July 27, 2025, Lorna Luft told CBS News Sunday Morning that her mother would approve of the handling and that she looked forward to new generations experiencing the film through this format.

Ahead of the premiere, the use of AI to alter the film drew criticism over ethical, environmental, societal and governmental concerns regarding AI regulation. Visual effects specialist Ben Grossmann responded that artists have long drawn inspiration from other works and that the original movie already exists and does not need improvement. The attraction received mixed reviews, with some praising its 4D features and others criticizing the AI's effect on visual and emotional quality.