Officers responded at about 11:20 a.m. to a report of a man with a gun near the intersection of Hollywood Boulevard and Cherokee Avenue, an LAPD spokesperson said.
New photos from the scene show the man pointing an apparent weapon directly at officers. They opened fire, striking him. He later died at a nearby hospital.
When police examined the item, they discovered it was a replica.
Photos from the scene also indicate a knife was recovered.
No officers were injured in the confrontation.
The shooting occurred less than a block from the Dolby Theatre, where the Oscars are normally presented.
A woman was also injured in crowd chaos that followed the incident.