Popularly known as the Fox Theater, LA’s historic Regency Village Theater in Westwood, has a couple of famous new owners, Christopher Nolan and Bradley Cooper among them. In fact, the dozens-strong group of filmmakers reads like the dream guest list of any star-studded awards ceremony. Variety reports that Jason Reitman, director of Juno and the upcoming SNL 1975, rallied a bunch of big shot producers and directors to preserve the theater after it was listed for sale last year.
“I’ve been coming to Westwood for as long as I can remember,” said Reitman, who is the son of iconic filmmaker Ivan Reitman. “When the Village Theater went on the market, I had visions of how quickly the National Theater [would become] a block of condos. I immediately made an offer and hoped my fellow directors would join me on this adventure.”
And join they did. The list of notables includes: JJ Abrams, Judd Apatow, Damien Chazelle, Chris Columbus, Ryan Coogler, Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Jonathan Dayton, Guillermo del Toro, Valerie Faris, Hannah Fidell, Alejandro González Iñárritu, James Gunn, Siân Heder, Rian Johnson, Gil Kenan, Karyn Kusama, Justin Lin, Phil Lord, David Lowery, Christopher McQuarrie, Chris Miller, Christopher Nolan, Alexander Payne, Todd Phillips, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Jay Roach, Seth Rogen, Emma Seligman, Brad Silberling, Steven Spielberg, Emma Thomas, Denis Villeneuve, Lulu Wang, and Chloé Zhao. “We take this stewardship very seriously and hope to offer a true community for anyone who loves the movies,” Reitman said.
Designed by Percy Parke Lewis, the theater opened in 1931 and has been the site of some of Hollywood’s most prominent movie premieres (The Hunger Games and every Harry Potter movie among them). The 1,341-person venue is topped by a distinct white tower that soars 170 feet in the air. It’s also known for two blue Deco-style signs—a wraparound marquee and a smaller sign that reads “Fox” at the tower’s pinnacle.
