Hollywood's greats flocked to the Dolby Theatre on Sunday (2 March) for the all-important Academy Awards (AKA The Oscars), where some of the biggest film and talent of the last 12 months battled it out for recognition of their work.
Some of the big winners of the night included 25-year-old Mikey Madison securing Best Actress, Adrien Brody securing Best Actor (after throwing his chewing gum off-stage to his girlfriend), and Anora being crowned the film of the year.
Oscars 2025: Mikey Madison wins Best Actress
Bang Showbiz - Vertical / VideoElephant
It's a glamorous affair - the nominee goodie bag totals more than $200,000 and the red carpet is awash with lavish designer gowns. But it would turn out most people who tune into the ceremony don't realise its setting could not be more ordinary.
While the Dolby Theatre itself is iconic and boasts a plush interior, it's actually set inside a shopping mall (Ovation Hollywood shopping mall and entertainment complex), with tourist favourite, the Hollywood Walk Of Fame on its doorstep.
The mall boasts stores including Forever21, Pandora, and Victoria's Secret to name but a few, and looks exactly as you'd expect any shopping centre to inside.
@swehme That’s Hollywood magic baby ✨ #oscars2025 #hollywood #losangeles #lalife
Guests could quite literally pop to the Walgreens or Sephora that surround it pre-show, if they really wanted to, or grab a bite to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe.
If you want to visit it for yourself, it's located on Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue in Los Angeles, California.
Given the exclusivity of the Oscars, many fans have been left baffled by this bubble-bursting revelation.
"Did you think they’re held on a private resort? Lol people move to LA and find out the smoke and mirrors and are mind blown that Hollywood is fake", one person wrote.
"And the theater is just like kinda small?!? The perspective they show on tv is wayyyy off!! It's kinda tiny in there", another added.
"Are the Oscars in the room with us?", someone else joked of its old-school interiors.
Credit where credit's due, one thing we can all agree on is that they do an A+ job of transforming the space - you learn something new every day.
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