The Fox Westwood Village Theatre is a historic theater in Westwood, Los Angeles, California. It is located across the street from the Fox Bruin Theater near the University of California, Los Angeles. The theater has a seating capacity of about 1,400 and has hosted many Hollywood film premieres.

History

Designed in the Spanish Mission style by architect Percy Parke Lewis, the theater was built in 1930 and first opened on August 14, 1931. It was part of a widespread cinema construction program undertaken by Fox West Coast Theatres. The theater is part of Westwood Village, a 1920s Mediterranean-style village development adjoining the University of California Los Angeles, which was planned by Harold and Edwin Janss of the Janss Investment Company.

In the 1940s, the theater's backstage areas were bricked off. The theater was given a Skouras remodel in 1951, adding plaster gold swirls on the stage area side-walls, exit upgrades, new carpet, and lobby upgrades, including California Gold Rush artwork. The theater's capacity was also increased to 1,535.

In 1973, National General Theatres, the former Fox Theatres-West Coast, sold this theater to Mann Theatres.[better source needed] In the late 1970s, new 70mm projection equipment was installed and a larger screen was added.[citation needed]

In 1988, the Fox Theatre was designated by the Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission as an Historic Cultural Monument (HCM #362). The theater was remodeled c.1998-1999.

In 2010, Mann Theatres went out of business and Regency Theatres became the operator of this theater. In 2014, Regency added Dolby Atmos to the theater for the movie Transcendence.[citation needed] In 2019, this theater became the first THX Ultimate Cinema™ theater.

An investor group led by Jason Reitman agreed to buy the theater in February 2024. The group consisted of more than two dozen filmmakers, including Steven Spielberg, Christopher Nolan, J. J. Abrams, Chris Columbus and Judd Apatow. The group said it planned to add a restaurant, bar, and gallery to the theater, and also to showcase props, wardrobe, and film collections from their personal collections, most notably Columbus's collection of 16mm film prints.

On July 25, 2024, the Regency Village Theater closed after its lease expired. The theater is set to reopen in 2027 and will be programmed by American Cinematheque.

Architectural features

The theater features a 170-foot white Spanish Revival/Moderne tower which looms over the Broxton and Weyburn Avenues intersection. Atop the tower is a blue and white metal Art Deco “Fox” sign, which was renovated in the late 1980s.

Carved winged lions sit halfway up the tower at the base of projecting columns. A blue and white sign with the legend "Fox Westwood Village" is positioned at the bottom of the tower just above the entrance. By night, the elegant white tower literally becomes a beacon with its signs and the shaft of the tower illuminated.

The rectangular cinema building immediately behind the tower features long rows of Churrigueresque stucco decorations. Perched atop the corners of the building stand carved griffins.

Movie premieres

Westwood Village hosts about 24 movie premieres per year. Films that debuted at the theater include:

Notes