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Tom Hanks bringing 'The Moonwalkers' to Houston for US premiere in 2025

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Narrated and co-written by Hanks, 'The Moonwalkers' envelops audiences in the history of the Apollo program and the future of lunar exploration by the Artemis program.

photo of a man wearing a suit standing next to a sign that says "space center houston"
"The Moonwalkers: A Journey with Tom Hanks" will make its U.S. premiere at Space Center Houston in 2025. (Image credit: Lightroom/J. Sutcliffe / Space Center Houston / collectSPACE.com)

"The Moonwalkers" is landing in Houston.

More than a year after the immersive film debuted in London, "The Moonwalkers: A Journey with Tom Hanks" is set to make its U.S. premiere at Space Center Houston in February 2025. Projected against multiple walls, "The Moonwalkers" envelops audiences in the story of humanity's journey to the moon, from the historic launches more than 50 years ago to the current efforts to return astronauts to the lunar surface today.

"I'm delighted to be bringing this project home to the place where the moonwalkers lived and worked throughout the Apollo program and where today's Artemis crews are preparing to follow in their footsteps," said Hanks in a statement.

"I'm delighted to be bringing this project home to the place where the moonwalkers lived and worked throughout the Apollo program and where today's Artemis crews are preparing to follow in their footsteps," said Tom Hanks. (Image credit: Lightroom/Justin Sutcliffe)

In addition to narrating the 50-minute production, Hanks co-wrote "Moonwalkers" with Christopher Riley, who is known for his work on space-theme documentaries for the BBC, Netflix and PBS. The film features original NASA mission audio alongside Hanks' voice, accompanied by an original score recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios.

Related: Tom Hanks returns to the moon with 'The Moonwalkers,' a new visual experience

"The Moonwalkers" also features the Artemis 2 crew, including NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, as well as Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen. The four are now slated to launch no earlier than April 2026, to become the first people to fly to the moon since the Apollo 17 astronauts in December 1972.

On screen, "The Moonwalkers" draws from the film and image archive created by the 12 people (to date) who have walked on the moon. These include photographs reworked by digital image restorer Andy Saunders for his 2022 book "Apollo Remastered," which impart new clarity and vibrancy to the Apollo visual record.

"We are thrilled to be the first in the Americas to showcase this epic film," said William Harris, president and CEO of Space Center Houston, the official visitor center for NASA's Johnson Space Center in Texas. "'The Moonwalkers' aligns perfectly with our mission to bring people closer to space."

"Our guests will be awe-struck," said Harris, "as they embark on an immersive, unforgettable journey beyond Earth."

Co-directed by Nick Corrigan and Lysander Ashton of 59 Studio, the film will be screened daily in Space Center Houston's newly renovated Space Center Theater, offering guests an ongoing opportunity to experience "The Moonwalkers." The upgrades to the theater will enhance the viewing experience, recreating the original U.K. production.

As the official visitor center for NASA Johnson Space Center, Space Center Houston strives to "bring people closer to space." (Image credit: Space Center Houston)
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— NASA's Artemis 2 mission: Everything you need to know

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— The Apollo Program: How NASA sent astronauts to the moon

"The Moonwalkers" first opened at Lightroom, near King's Cross station, in December 2023. First set for a four-month run, "The Moonwalkers" at Lightroom has been extended three times with tickets still available for shows through April 27, 2025. Space Center Houston is the first location outside of Lightroom to host the groundbreaking film.

Showtimes, tickets and other details for "The Moonwalkers'" first U.S. engagement are still to be announced.

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Robert Z. Pearlman
Robert Z. Pearlman
collectSPACE.com Editor, Space.com Contributor

Robert Pearlman is a space historian, journalist and the founder and editor of collectSPACE.com, an online publication and community devoted to space history with a particular focus on how and where space exploration intersects with pop culture. Pearlman is also a contributing writer for Space.com and co-author of "Space Stations: The Art, Science, and Reality of Working in Space” published by Smithsonian Books in 2018. He previously developed online content for the National Space Society and Apollo 11 moonwalker Buzz Aldrin, helped establish the space tourism company Space Adventures and currently serves on the History Committee of the American Astronautical Society, the advisory committee for The Mars Generation and leadership board of For All Moonkind. In 2009, he was inducted into the U.S. Space Camp Hall of Fame in Huntsville, Alabama. In 2021, he was honored by the American Astronautical Society with the Ordway Award for Sustained Excellence in Spaceflight History.