The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures had all the makings of a full-fledged Hollywood tragedy two years ago. It had gone over budget and was behind time. The museum parted ways with its founding director amid delays and a contentious debate about the museum’s mission and purpose, and the museum board reached across the country to bring back its former fund-raising chief, Bill Kramer, to save a project that now threatened to tarnish an already beleaguered Academy. Then the epidemic struck.
The Academy Museum came this week with the pomp and glamour that only Hollywood can provide. Yes, it was meant to cost $250 million and open in 2017, but the ultimate cost was more than $480 million, and it was over four years late.
It was not an easy task. Kramer, along with Jacqueline Stewart, the museum’s chief artistic and programming officer, and a team of curators, assisted in bringing it to completion in the midst of a pandemic that threatened fund-raising and attendance, as well as a renewed debate on equity and social justice that implicated Hollywood as much as any other American institution.
“I don’t envy him at all,” Ted Sarandos, co-CEO of Netflix and chairman of the museum’s board of directors, said. “But he does it all with grace.”
Kramer is a cheerful and effervescent addition to Los Angeles, constantly looking on the bright side of life. He discussed his return from New York and the issue of reconsidering the museum in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death and Harvey Weinstein’s conviction for sexual assault. “The world is changing,” he explained. “It’s wonderful.” We were not only prepared, but also excited to have such discussions.”
