I love the look of beams on a valuted ceiling, but would prefer white or whitewashed so they are not so distracting.

That does look nice! Thanks for the idea.

That could work for sure.

I also like when the walls and ceiling are the same color when you have vaulted ceilings. Feels less color block ish.

It's difficult to say without knowing what you plan to do with the rest of the room.

Re-painting the walls is a great idea.

I think the room could look great with more contemporary furniture, and walls in a cooler white color similar to the ceiling and keeping the beams.

The beams add heft and architectural interest to an otherwise bland building.

why would you want to take them down? if you think the finish on them looks real enough, I'd keep them. I might even wrap them w/a real wood veneer.

why would you want a cathedral ceiling plain and blah?

https://www.soulandlane.com/wood-beams-in-living-room-2091/

here are some ideas

and please don't paint them. unless you're at the beach somewhere

although, I do like the ebony stained darker look against the white panel ceiling. If you do this, you won't have to scrape. just put the planks up over it

Leave the beams and paint the walls and ceiling the same color.

Leave the beams but paint both the walls & ceiling white.

I like them a lot and wouldn't remove them. They add to the charm and character.

Keep the beams. They add texture to the space. You can leave them stained or paint them if required in the future.

Jennifer’s advice and Beth’s examples all point to a room painted in one color.

Keep the beams but paint them

Whether you keep as is, paint them white, or remove them very much depends on you style and furnishings. If you are going for a modern, sleek sleek, or minimal/clean look then remove them. Otherw Otherwise there are plenty of more charming looks in the pics others have posted.

I think the beam question has been addressed well. When I looked at the picture of the room the first thing that occurred to me was why is the sofa in front of the large window? Unless it's a hideous view, the sofa should be placed to enjoy the view.

I think painting the beams , the walls and the ceiling all one color would work very well with a very contemporay style. I usually hate fake beams but it hink removing them might be a bigger deal than just painting.

I’d remove them if only to make taking off the popcorn so much easier.

I like your beams but agree ceiling and walls should be same colour. Can you paint out the little strip of black around the windows?

You can either scrape off the popcorn or drywall over it with 1/4" thick drywall.

I'd paint the walls the final ceiling color, then evaluate before I do the popcorn removal. I think that change will really transform the space and help with the final decision.

Love the beams. I agree with others that walls and ceiling should be one continuous color. It's a lovely room.

Thank you everyone for the ideas! I really appreciate having some other opinions on this...especially before I go and do something drastic that I will regret. I think I will keep them as-is and like everyone said, paint the walls a white to match. I think that will be the best place to start.