Spooky season is getting a massive upgrade. The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures has announced its next major exhibition, The Horror Show, opening in Los Angeles on September 26, 2026.
Curated with the help of a powerhouse advisory team—including four-time Oscar nominee Willem Dafoe, “Longlegs” director Osgood Perkins, and Oscar-winning makeup artist Howard Berger—the exhibition will take over the fourth-floor Marilyn and Jeffrey Katzenberg Gallery through July 2027.
“Cinema in general engages your sense of wonder, but horror can explode it,” Dafoe said of the project. “It is a popular form, born of modest financial resources and with a strong, lasting independent streak.”
Visitors will navigate through a darkened soundscape before entering six distinct, highly immersive “chambers” dedicated to the history of the genre:
- Gothic: Gothic horror explores the darker edges of the human experience, often through the character of a vampire, one of horror’s most enduring figures. This chamber, which resembles a shadowed crypt, is adorned with original concept artwork and in-character portrait photos of classic horror stars and serves as the setting for an array of original objects. The crown jewel here is the Academy’s recently restored, original cape worn by Bela Lugosi in “Dracula.”
- Psychological: Blurring the boundaries between reality and delusion, psychological horror explores the mind in all its complexity, often leaving audiences questioning their own perceptions. This stark white, clinical space will feature original storyboards from films like Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho” and props from films that include “Get Out,” “The Silence of the Lambs,” and “The Shining.”
- Science: Born in a laboratory, science horror confronts the dangers of ambition, hubris, and humanity’s unsettling urge to engineer and manipulate life. This chamber replicates a laboratory setting and showcases creature designs and prosthetics from films like “Alien,” “The Thing,” “The Substance,” and an original mask from “Creature from the Black Lagoon.”
- Slasher: Slasher films are notorious for their blood and gore, making audiences face fear dead on—an unsettling reminder that anyone could be next. Designed to look like a killer’s home, this room features fully costumed figures of Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers, Ghostface, and Art the Clown, alongside weapons and masks from films like “Saw” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”
- Religion: Religious horror films offer narratives of meaning, mystery, and morality, shaping how power, belief, and the body—both pure and possessed—are understood. A witches’ circle featuring historical documents from the Salem witch trials and key costumes from “Midsommar,” “Suspiria,” and “Hellraiser” is just some of what you’ll encounter.
- Ghosts: This chamber spotlights the prevalence and power of the spectral and supernatural in film, with ghosts serving as inspiration for innovation in special and visual effects. Visitors will walk into a haunted living room where they can surf the original 1999 marketing website for “The Blair Witch Project” and view an array of haunted objects from films such as “The Conjuring,” “Poltergeist,” and “The Ring.”
To exit the exhibit, brave visitors must pass through The Blood Room—a final, sensorial experience in which the gallery walls are layered with cinematic gore.
“Our teams have done a phenomenal job creating an immersive and thrilling journey through the history of horror films, making an exhibition that is both emotional and experiential,” said Director and President of the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures and Academy Collection, Amy Homma.
The exhibition will be accompanied by public programs and film screenings that begin September 26 with the retrospective film series, John Carpenter: Prince of Darkness; the 2026 Monster Mash on October 24 featuring the US premiere of the 4K restoration of “Horror of Dracula;” Museum After Dark on October 31 featuring a screening of “The Craft;” and a 50th anniversary screening of “Carrie” with Oscar-winning actress Sissy Spacek on November 19.
The Horror Show will be on view through July 25, 2027. While parental guidance is advised, the Academy Museum will also present a small-scale, family-friendly exhibition, Zombies!, in the adjacent Warner Bros. Gallery, on view from September 26, 2026, to July 25, 2027.
Zombies! explores how movie zombies are created and where their stories come from. Set in an interactive educational space, Zombies! showcases how filmmakers and artists create the unforgettable images of the undead we see on screen. Visitors can also discover the origins of zombies and how they have evolved into the classic horror monsters we know today.
A publication by the Academy Museum and DelMonico—richly illustrated with concept art, film stills, and behind-the-scenes production photos—will be available in September. The Academy Museum store will also offer exclusive The Horror Show merchandise, including apparel, toys, collectibles, and books.
Tickets and planning information can be found on the official Academy Museum website.
