Night at the Museum is a 2006 American fantasy adventure-comedy film based on the 1993 children's book of the same name by Milan Trenc. It follows a divorced father trying to settle down, impress his son, and find his destiny. He applies for a job as a night watchman at New York City's American Museum of Natural History and subsequently discovers that the exhibits, animated by a magical Egyptian artifact, come to life at night. Night at the Museum is a 2006 fantasy comedy film directed by Shawn Levy and written by Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon. It is based on the 1993 children's book The Night at the Museum by Croatian illustrator Milan Trenc. The film stars Ben Stiller in the title role, Carla Gugino, Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney, Bill Cobbs, and Robin Williams. It tells the story of a divorced father who applies for a job as a night watchman at New York City's American Museum of Natural History and subsequently discovers that the exhibits, animated by a magical Egyptian artifact, come to life at night. 20th Century Fox released the film on December 22, 2006, and it grossed $574.5 million worldwide, becoming the 5th highest-grossing film of 2006, but received mixed reviews from critics. Two sequels were released: Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian in 2009, and Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb in 2014. A remake is also in development for the streaming service Disney+. The building featured in the film, which was constructed on a sound stage in Burnaby, British Columbia, is based on the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, external shots of which were used in the movie. Trainers spent several weeks training Crystal, who plays the troublemaking monkey Dexter, to slap and bite Stiller in the film. Director Shawn Levy credited Ben Stiller for the ensemble cast: "When actors hear that Ben Stiller is in a movie they want to work with him. It['s] a high-water mark and it absolutely draws actors in and I'm convinced that's a big part of why we got this cast." Three years after the previous film, several of the exhibits are transferred to the Smithsonian in Washington, DC, and Dexter the monkey steals the tablet of Ahkmenrah. Larry must break in and team up with his old friends, and new ally Amelia Earheart, to get it back from Ahkmenrah's resurrected evil older brother Kahmunrah before morning.  Five years after the previous film, Larry discovers that the tablet of Ahkmenrah's magic is failing. He and his now-teenage son Nick, along with Teddy Roosevelt, Sacagawea, Jedediah, Octavius, Dexter, Attila the Hun, and a new caveman figure named Laaa (who looks like Larry) travel to a fictional version of the British Museum in London to undo the curse, with the help of Ahkmenrah's parents and the narcissistic Sir Lancelot of Camelot, before the tablet's magic disappears forever. .