One show, three editions — this page dates them
The Wizard of Oz at Sphere opened August 28, 2025, and has already changed twice, so this page's films are labeled by edition rather than blended. The pre-opening preview (June 2025) sits down with Sphere's team two months early for the pitch in three words — 'epic, immersive, emotional': the original 1939 film expanded across Sphere's technologies until audiences feel they are in Oz, walking the road with Dorothy. The opening-week film (August 2025) asks the question everyone asked — did AI ruin it? — and answers with evidence: faces sharpened and reframed for the giant screen, artificial snow drifting down in the poppy field as the spell takes hold, an apple-tree scene staged to feel more menacing. The September 2025 episode's tornado report is the visceral one: wind strong enough to flatten popcorn cups and send debris swirling — hold onto loose items.
The show as it now plays
The September 2026 upgrade refreshed the year-old production, and two films document it: a full segment in an October 2026 episode (pyrotechnics, Glinda glitter that falls over the audience, flying monkeys, restored and extended material including a Cowardly Lion scene) and the attractions magazine's 79-second debut clip of the enhanced 4D effects. The complete walkthrough covers the experience end to end as guests meet it: entry through the Venetian/Palazzo connecting hallway, clear security about 45 minutes early, then the 4D machinery — tornado winds and flying leaves, apples that fall into the audience, haptic seats. A staycation film builds a whole Palazzo trip around the show, Sphere reached through the Venetian as most guests reach it (filmed in the show's first year, before the enhancements — dated in its summary).
Which film to watch
Deciding whether to go? The opening-week AI film is the honest evidence reel. Already booked? The walkthrough is your logistics. Curious what changed in 2026? The upgrade segment. Our Sphere page covers the venue itself — the screen, the building, the robots in the atrium; this page is the yellow brick road across it.
Sources: the seven videos on this page — a pre-opening preview, opening-week and first-days coverage, a first-year staycation, a complete walkthrough, and two September–October 2026 upgrade films — summarized from their entries in our catalog.