The Omni Theater in Fort Worth is back with a major update

Omni IMAX in Fort Worth returns as a new reimagined digital dome

If you grew up in Fort Worth, you probably remember the Omni Theater IMAX at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History.

For nearly 40 years, this has been a popular spot for those who want to experience the 180-degree domed ceiling, and it’s been a hit with kids all over North Texas.

Well, he’s coming back in spectacular fashion.

A $20 million IMAX theater overhaul is in the works. It has remained untouched since it closed in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic and has remained virtually unchanged since 1983 when it opened.

Many people who grew up in Fort Worth and Dallas went on tours to the Omni Theater IMAX and at the time it was a unique experience.

The museum wants to bring this experience back, but in a much better way than before, turning the dome into one giant LED screen that will create an immersive experience that most of us have never seen.

“So the footprint will stay the same, but we’re going to strip everything from the inside if you like, and it’s going to be a brand new 8K LED digital dome. 8K. That’s the limit of what you can see from far away,” said Tammy McKinney, the museum’s vice president of development and marketing. “So when you think of your 4K home TV, it will be 8K, so the clarity and brightness will do something you almost can’t imagine.”

The current IMAX projector system, which has projected films onto the dome’s ceiling for nearly four decades, will remain intact. In fact, the museum decided to leave it in place and turn it into an exhibit as you enter the newly reimagined digital dome created by COSM.

“We will be the first here in the country and in the world to have something like this in such a large cinema. And again, the experience that people will have when they come here to watch the documentary and watch the films we will show here and the videos will be amazing,” said Orlande Carvalho, Acting President of the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History.

For the first time, a truly interactive platform will appear in the museum. It will be a very versatile theater with a range of possibilities.

It is hoped that construction will begin in the spring. Once launched, this will be an 18 month project.

The museum raised about 80% of the funding needed: $5 million from the city of Fort Worth, $3 million from Tarrant County, $3 million from the Amon G. Carter Foundation, $1 million from the Ryan Foundation, and $1 million from the William Scott Foundation. Foundation. Carvalho says he is confident they will get the $4 million they need to fill the gap and start construction.

The theater will also be significantly upgraded when it comes to accessibility. The theater lobby will be much larger and will also be brought up to ADA standards. 300 new, larger, much more comfortable seats will fill the new theatre.