It has been more than two decades since the Oscars were celebrated as America started a war in the Middle East.
In 2003, the Academy Awards ceremony at the Dolby Theater took place just days after the US military invaded Iraq, raising security concerns at Hollywood’s biggest night to the point where security was tighter than ever.
This time — with growing concerns not only over war with Iran, but also the recent shooting at a university in Virginia and an attack on a synagogue in Michigan — security will be even tighter, authorities said. Security authorities, law enforcement and Oscars officials stress that, it is a warning and there are no known credible threats to the event.
Authorities set up a one-mile cordon around the Dolby Theater for the celebration. State and local agencies working with the Joint Terrorism Task Force monitor social media and gather intelligence to prevent any security risks. And the Los Angeles Police Department, SWAT, bomb squad and snipers will be on the scene, law enforcement sources told The Times.
LAPD Captain Mike Bland said the department in recent years has created a special team to handle major events and is now using more personnel for the Oscars.
“Security has increased significantly over the years not just because of the ongoing events but because of the last few years,” he said.
Security has been tight at the Oscars every year since the September 11 terrorist attacks 24½ years ago. While federal and local law enforcement agencies do not publicly share all the safety measures in place, sources told The Times that even the air around the event is being monitored for potential hazards, including radiation.
Oscar photos of the 77th Academy Awards at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles on Feb. 27, 2005.
(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)
Years ago, a biological decontamination unit was installed and military-grade drones flew overhead. There is also more invisible security being used including cameras and overwatch by officers and agents of the organization than in previous years.
At any major event, law enforcement officials and organizers are wary of security, but a memo this week warning agencies across California that a war with Iran could lead to unexpected drone attacks has brought heightened attention to how Sunday’s highly publicized event will be secured.
In a memo sent to organizations that are part of the Federation Joint Terrorism Task Force, the government said, “We have recently received unconfirmed information that in early February 2026, Iran is believed to be planning a surprise attack using unmanned aerial vehicles. [UAVs] on an unidentified ship off the coast of the United States, specifically in unspecified locations in California, in the event of US strikes on Iran. “
However, sources told The Times that the warning was a warning and there was no credible intelligence indicating an imminent attack.
Concerns heightened this week after a man convicted of trying to fund the Islamic State terror group opened fire at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Va., and another man who had family members killed in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon rammed his truck into a synagogue and a kindergarten.
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said this week that his department, in general, is more concerned about these types of attacks than sophisticated terrorist plots.
“We have an event and we have security rings,” McDonnell said Friday. King said the LAPD has had a special events team in recent years that has focused on building security plans and staging major LA events.
“It’s going to be fine,” he said. “We are well prepared.”
The event’s executive producer Raj Kapoor told reporters at a press conference Wednesday that officials monitor events around the world every year before the Oscars to prepare and work closely with the LAPD and the FBI.
Los Angeles police will be imposing security restrictions around the Oscars, a traffic control strategy designed to prevent people from driving in a straight pattern toward the theater and a visible presence throughout Hollywood on Sunday.
“This show should run like clockwork,” Kapoor said. “But we want everyone who comes to this show, who sees this show, who is a fan of the show when they’re standing outside the bars, we want everyone to feel safe and secure and welcome, so it’s our job as a production team to make sure that translates.”
