Few locations are as iconic and enduring as the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado, the inspiration for the Overlook Hotel in Stephen King’s The Shining.
Now, the Stanley Hotel is partnering with Jason Blum and his horror production company Blumhouse (Get Out, M3gan, The Purge) to open a horror exhibit at the Stanley Film Center. Colorado Governor Jared Polis and the Colorado Office of Film, Television and Media announced that the exhibit would open in 2026.
Gov. Polis tweeted, “Here’s Blumhouse! This iconic Colorado hotel will now have an extraordinary new element of fun and fright for Coloradans and visitors across the world to enjoy, driving tourism and strengthening our economy. I look forward to seeing the exhibit and am happy that our administration can help make this possible.”
Colorado film commissioner Donald Zuckerman told the Denver Post, “Think of it as a mini-Academy Museum dedicated to horror,” adding “Ghastly.”
“The Stanley Hotel is hallowed ground for horror fans, and that makes this presence at the Stanley Film Center a natural extension for Blumhouse,” Blum said. He added, “Fans are going to get closer than ever before to their favorite films, … though they may want to keep their distance with a few of the ‘items’ in our collection. We’re excited to get to work, but first we need to make it out of the hedge maze.”
In addition to inspiring The Shining, the Stanley Hotel is considered one of the most haunted hotels in the country. The hotel has appeared in paranormal series like Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures. But it spooky history hasn’t deterred the film industry. Last year, the Sundance Institute announced that it would host its prestigious Directors Lab at the hotel in the spring.
(featured image: Warner Bros. Pictures)
