The Wizard of Oz is Returning to Theaters for Its 80th Anniversary

In the summer of 1939, Victor Fleming set the standard for movie magic with the release of The Wizard of Oz. Even today, the big-screen adaptation of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz—which follows young Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland), her group of misfit friends, and her little dog, too—regularly tops the list of the greatest movies ever made and was recently named the most influential film of all time. Now, in honor of its 80th anniversary, the iconic film will be making its way back into theaters for a limited, three-day run, beginning this weekend.

The Wizard of Oz, which won two of its six Oscar nominations in 1940, will kick off this year's TCM Big Screen Classics series—a collaboration between Fathom Events and Turner Classic Movies that regularly brings beloved films back to the big screen, and has already put My Fair Lady, To Kill a Mockingbird, Steel Magnolias, The Shawshank Redemption, Alien, and The Godfather: Part II on the schedule for 2019.

TCM Primetime host Ben Mankiewicz will offer recorded commentary both before and after the film so that viewers may better appreciate the scale of its filmmaking achievement.

The Wizard of Oz will play on nearly 700 movie screens across the country on three days over the next week: Sunday, January 27; Tuesday, January 29; and Wednesday, January 30. While most Sunday screenings will happen at 2 p.m. local time, some theaters will run an encore later in the day. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the movie will screen at 7 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase now at the Fathom Events website.

For a look at all your favorite films that will be making their way back to a theater near you this year, check out the full TCM Big Screen Classics schedule here.