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The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles is presenting The Horror Show, an exhibition on horror cinema’s history and appeal. Built around Bela Lugosi’s Dracula cape, it brings together costumes, props, artwork, posters and scripts from films across the genre. The exhibition frames horror as filmmaking that gives form to fears about life, death and the unknown.
The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles is presenting The Horror Show, an exhibition tracing horror cinema through costumes, props, concept art, posters and scripts. Centered on material from films including Dracula, Psycho, The Shining, Get Out and Midsommar, the show considers how horror gives audiences ways to encounter fears about life, death and the unknown.
The exhibition began with a single object: the cape worn by Bela Lugosi in Tod Browning’s 1931 film Dracula. The Academy Museum acquired the cape from the Lugosi family in 2019. Senior curator Jessica Niebel told Hyperallergic that it had been kept as a family heirloom for generations and that the museum wanted to give it a special place in the exhibition.
From that starting point, curators assembled materials from the museum’s collection and from dozens of lenders. Alongside the cape, visitors can see film costumes, props, concept art, posters and scripts. The selections range from genre classics such as Psycho and The Shining to more recent films including Get Out and Midsommar, as well as titles the report describes as underappreciated, including Tales From the Hood and The Stuff.
The show connects horror’s screen images with the craft behind them, bringing attention to both visual design and storytelling. The source report says the exhibition is on view through July but does not specify the year. It presents the show as a chance to reconsider horror’s status in film culture, where the genre has often been treated as less serious than other forms of cinema.
Horror’s Place in Film Culture
The exhibition’s central argument is that horror merits attention not just as entertainment built around scares, but as a form of cinema that addresses subjects audiences may find difficult to approach directly. By bringing objects from different periods and styles together, The Horror Show links the genre’s popularity to its ability to stage fears about mortality, the surrounding world and the unknown.
For visitors, the objects also make the filmmaking process more visible. A costume or prop can show how a movie’s unsettling images were made, while scripts and concept art offer evidence of the decisions behind the story and its look. That focus on creative work supports the exhibition’s broader challenge to the idea that horror is merely a low-status or “vulgar” kind of filmmaking. The show presents genre history as part of a wider account of cinema and its audiences.
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From Lugosi’s Cape to the Exhibition
The exhibition grew from the Academy Museum’s 2019 acquisition of Lugosi’s Dracula cape, which came from the actor’s family. According to curator Jessica Niebel, the object’s family history helped make it a natural starting point for a larger presentation about horror cinema.
The resulting exhibition draws on the museum’s own collection and borrowed archival material. Its range—from early Hollywood horror to contemporary films and lesser-known titles—reflects the curators’ decision to look beyond a small group of familiar classics. The source report describes a genre that has attracted audiences while also facing criticism from people who regard its films as less serious than other cinema.
““It’s been a family heirloom for several generations. We knew we wanted to highlight it in a special way.””
— Jessica Niebel, senior curator at the Academy Museum, speaking to Hyperallergic
Exhibition Dates and Curatorial Detail
The source report says the exhibition is on view through July but gives no year, so its precise closing date and current availability cannot be established from that account alone. It also does not provide a full object list, visitor figures or further curator comments explaining how individual films were chosen. The exhibition’s interpretation of horror’s cultural importance is presented as a curatorial framing, not as a measured account of how all audiences respond to the genre.
Visitors Can Explore the Show
The immediate next step for readers in Los Angeles is to check the Academy Museum’s current exhibition information for opening hours, ticket details and the confirmed closing date, particularly because the source report does not name the year attached to “through July.” The exhibition itself offers visitors a chance to compare objects from horror films across eras and examine how filmmakers build the genre’s images and stories.
The report does not announce a subsequent exhibition or a new acquisition related to the show. Any further developments, including changes to its schedule or additional programming, remain unreported in the source material.
Key Questions
What is The Horror Show?
It is an exhibition at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles exploring horror cinema through costumes, props, concept art, film posters and scripts.
What object inspired the exhibition?
The starting point was the cape worn by Bela Lugosi in the 1931 film Dracula. The Academy Museum acquired it from the Lugosi family in 2019.
Which films are represented?
The report names Dracula, Psycho, The Shining, Get Out, Midsommar, Tales From the Hood and The Stuff, among other works.
Why does the exhibition focus on horror?
The show examines how horror stories and images channel fears about life, death and the unknown, while inviting audiences to reconsider the genre’s place in film history.
When does the exhibition close?
The source report says it is on view through July but does not specify the year or exact closing date. Check the Academy Museum’s current listings for updated schedule information.
Source: hyperallergic.com
