2 Century-Old LA Movie Houses Are Closing This Week

LOS ANGELES, CA — A pair of movie houses that have stood across from each other for nearly a century in Westwood Village, hosting glitzy premieres and afternoon matinees, are set to close this week.

It's the end of an era for the Regency Village Theatre and the Bruin, whose doors will close at the end of business Thursday night, when their leases expire. The pair of theaters have been run by Regency since 2010.

"We have been proud to steward these buildings for the past 14 years and are grateful to the Hollywood community and patrons alike who have supported these iconic theaters," Regency President Lyndon Golin said in a statement. "We are excited to see what the future holds for these beloved Los Angeles landmarks and look forward to their continued success."

A new chapter for the Village Theatre is already being written: A coalition of directors led by Jason Reitman earlier this year announced they had inked a deal to take over the 1931 theater, known for its 170-foot white Spanish Revival/Art Deco tower.

The theater has long been a favorite for the moviegoers and as a site for premieres, including recent releases "Challengers" and "Spider-Man: No Way Home."

The group has not revealed a timeline of when the theater will reopen, but Reitman told the Los Angeles Times that the new owners are planning renovations.

“We have an exciting vision that includes dining, drinking, moviegoing, gallery viewing and programming of new and old films, and we cannot wait to share that with everybody,” he said.

The more modest Bruin's fate is unclear. Its owners told the Times they are “currently evaluating future opportunities for the Bruin" amid the expiration of Regency's lease.

The theater, dressed as it appeared in the 1960s, was a notable location in Quentin Tarantino's 2019 film "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood." In the film, Sharon Tate slips into the theater to watch herself in "The Wrecking Crew."

Both theaters were designated as Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monuments in 1988.

City News Service contributed to this report.