New attraction brings the magic of movie props to DTLV
A new attraction in downtown Las Vegas wants guests to bask in movie magic through a gallery of iconic props.
The Movie Prop Experience, within the Neonopolis complex at the Fremont Street Experience, welcomed invited guests and media to a Thursday preview of its rotating collection ahead of its opening to the general public next week.
The museumlike venue lets customers get up close to props used in major films.
The items are as small as a James Bond American Express card from Daniel Craig’s films or a golden snitch from the “Harry Potter” series to as large as a towering alien predator from the “Alien” franchise.
Other items displayed are movie scripts — including one for the Bond film “Casino Royale” and another for Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight” — as well as props from “Gremlins” and “Ironman.”
Co-owners Aaron Kybartas and Tiana Armstrong got the idea for a public space to view movie props from their collection business Hero Prop, which sells and acquires film items.
“We found that a lot of pieces were coming and going and were going into private collections,” Kybartas said. “We thought this needs to be out for the general public, because it’s a shame to see a lot of pieces get squirreled away.”
Armstrong expects more additions to the 3,200-square-foot space in the next week and beyond. The team has even more pieces in storage — some were even too big to fit through the door, including “Fast and Furious” cars and a pyramid from the science fiction movie “Stargate.”
General Manager Doug Stewart said he hopes guests can view the experience as a place to marvel at an unsung side of film production. Props often take many hours to complete, only to get on- and off-screen in a flash.
“The people who make these things never really get recognized,” Stewart said. “And so much work goes into everything you see, you cannot imagine it. A lot of them get thrown away, so this is sort of celebrating that side of moviemaking. There’s so many people involved in this, and we can’t list them all.”
Speaking at a ribbon-cutting ceremony ahead of the unveiling, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman said the attraction was a great addition to downtown Las Vegas and Neonopolis.
“(Developer and owner Rohit) Joshi worked so hard to make everything work here and be a place where everybody who drives into town or flies into town wants to come down to Neonopolis,” she said. “It’s forever changing.”
The Movie Prop Experience will be open from noon to midnight daily beginning on an undetermined day next week, the owners said. Adult admission is $28, with lower prices expected for children, military members and first responders.
McKenna Ross is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms. Contact her at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.