KTLA

Kobe Bryant’s hand and footprints go on permanent display at TCL Chinese Theatre

Kobe Bryant‘s legacy is now permanently cemented in Hollywood history.

On Tuesday morning, the legendary TCL Chinese Theatre permanently placed the Los Angeles Lakers star’s footprints and handprints in the forecourt of the landmark.

His daughters Natalia, Bianka and Capri appeared at the ceremony along with Bryant’s widow, Vanessa. Lakers President Jeanie Buss and former Lakers Head Coach and player Byron Scott were also on hand.

“It’s been in Ohio as early as the mid-1850s at least, brought in as an ornamental plant because of its unique foliage and white flowers,” Gardner said. “It was actually planted in people’s landscaping, and it has been spreading.”

Now, the public can place their hands and feet inside the NBA icon’s prints. Due to the size of the theater’s courtyard, not all handprints made of hundreds of celebrities can be displayed all the time. They’re often switched out for new ones, but the Mamba’s will now be there forever.

Bryant became the first athlete to have his hands and feet imprinted in cement at the theater back in February 2011.

Bryant died in 2020 alongside his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others in a helicopter crash in Los Angeles.