Plenty of children dream of finding a prehistoric fossil as they sift through rocks in a playground, a park or a backyard. The thrill of discovering something primordial is often inspired by science-themed books and toys featuring favorite dinosaurs — like Stegosaurus or, closer to home, Appalachiosaurus — and brought to life by blockbuster Hollywood films. In 2022, three boys stumbled across the bones of a teenage Tyrannosaurus Rex (aka, T.
Rex) peeking out from the Badlands near their home in North Dakota. Uncovering any dinosaur fossil would be the kind of find to dominate chatter in any middle school cafeteria. However, with so little evidence on record of juvenile T.
Rex, this particular discovery generated waves of excitement among even veteran paleontological circles. This discovery of a lifetime became the focal point for "T. REX 3D," a new giant-screen film premiering with a special event at the Tennessee Aquarium IMAX 3D Theater at 5:30 p.
m. on Thursday, Aug. 29.
The premiere will feature plenty of activities to inspire eager young dinosaur lovers before "T. REX 3D" begins at 7 p.m.
Staff from the Tennessee Aquarium and Creative Discovery Museum will engage kids with dinosaur-themed activities, temporary dino tattoos, mock dinosaur dig sites with prizes and some dancing T-Rex mascots. A 10-foot-tall animatronic T. Rex — roughly the same size as the juvenile T.
Rex discovered by the trio of boys in the film — will also grace the IMAX Great Hall from the film�.