Robert Trujillo has added fuel to the fire regarding rumours of a Metallica residency at the Las Vegas Sphere, saying that the “possibilities are endless”.
The bassist has been a part of the line-up of the thrash metal giants for over two decades now, joining frontman James Hetfield and co. back in 2003.
In a new interview on SiriusXM’s Trunk Nation, he weighed in on rumours that the metal icons were securing a residency slot at the Sphere in Las Vegas. The speculation first arose this summer, when the band’s drummer Lars Ulrich shared that they were in talks about heading to the venue in 2026.
When asked in the interview whether or not the plans for a residency could come to fruition, Trujillo shared that he was equally as excited about the potential and up for the gigs as it would mark an unprecedented milestone for the metal community.
“I’m already thinking like, imagine this, imagine that, imagine, you know, because Metallica’s music is so visual,” he said. “I mean, imagine a song like [1986 song] ‘Orion’ and what you can do with that… The possibilities are endless.”
He continued, saying that while nothing has been locked in, the band are in talks to get the residency set in stone.
Trujillo added: “So for me, it’s again, like a dream come true. We’ll see what happens. I know we’re talking about it and hopefully this is gonna happen.”
“No heavy rock band has done this,” he went on, referring to how no hard rock or metal group has secured a slot at the venue. “There’s a lot of history with our music and a lot of, I think there’s potential for a lot of visual stimulation on this. And I can’t wait to be a part of it. So let’s see what happens.”
Back in July, Ulrich then got fans’ hopes up for a Sphere residency further when he appeared in an interview with Howard Stern, also on SiriusXM, and gave a convoluted response when asked if the band were in talks to play there.
“I’m not going to confirm anything, because there’s nothing to confirm. But I’m not going to deny it, because we’re all such fans of this venue,” he said. “All of our managers and our production people have been there and looked at it. It’s something that we’re considering, [but] nothing is etched in stone or green-lit. It’s something that we’re looking at at some point when the 2026 tour is done.”
“I would fucking love to do it, let there be no question about it,” he added. “It’s not signed, sealed and delivered, but speaking to me and asking my opinion, I would fucking love to do it.”
The state-of-the-art venue opened in 2023 and has hosted residencies from U2, Phish, The Eagles and the Backstreet Boys. It was also recently confirmed that a new Sphere venue will be constructed in Abu Dhabi.
U2 were the first band to play at the Sphere, and NME gave their performance a glowing five-star review, sharing that it “truly takes your breath away”.
Earlier this year, Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett also said the band would love the chance to play the Sphere, saying it was a “great example of how venues are changing”.
“That’s using modern technology to the fullest, to really up the levels of production and entertainment, connected to AI and making it a crazy experience,” he added.
As for what the band do have confirmed for 2026, they will be heading over to this side of the pond for a string of stadium shows in the UK and Europe – including dates in Dublin, Glasgow, Cardiff and London. Opening sets will come from Gojira, Pantera, Knocked Loose and Avatar. See the full list of dates here and find any remaining tickets here.
