Twilight marathon at the Highland, anyone?
Hot on the heels of her directorial debut, Kristen Stewart is proving her love of all things cinema in a brand new way – she’s just bought a historic Hollywood theater.
Chatting to Architectural Digest, the actress and filmmaker revealed she has purchased the recently-shuttered Highland Theatre. The 101-year-old theater unfortunately fell victim to COVID-19, closing its doors in March of 2024 after struggling to regain its footing post-pandemic.
A native Angeleno, Stewart gushed that it was love at first sight between her and the Highland – “I didn’t realise I was looking for a theater until this place came to my attention…I ran toward it with everything I had.”
Beyond giving the place the fixer-upper it deserves, a restoration of the Highland aims to usher in a much-needed cultural refresh of the Hollywood cinema scene. “There’s a way to bring it back to life in a way that embraces its history but also brings…something new to the whole LA film community.”
Above all, Stewart dreams of creating “a space to gather and scheme and dream together”.
“It’s not just for pretentious Hollywood cinephiles. I see it as an antidote to all the corporate bullshit, a place that takes movie culture away from just buying and selling.”
As someone who has certainly copped her fair share of flak from pretentious Hollywood cinephiles across her now decades-long career, it’s clear that the project is close to her heart.
Throughout the press tour for The Chronology of Water (her directorial debut), Stewart insisted that the metaphorical Hollywood boat needs to be rocked – “The narrow path that’s been forged has to be broadened…we can’t turn our backs on the people who are most in need”.
If Stewart’s wish is to place cinema back into the hands of those that need it most, breathing new life into a much-beloved, landmark theater in the heart of California is a pretty great place to start.
