Kristen Stewart Is Restoring a 1925 Movie Theater in LA’s Highland Park

The actress and director announced plans to reopen Los Angeles' Highland Theatre, which closed in 2024.

After years of acting and producing, and recently establishing herself as a writer/director, Kristen Stewart is adding another job title to her ever-expanding resume: theater owner.

In a new interview with Architectural Digest, Stewart revealed that she is in the process of restoring and opening the Highland Theatre, the 1925 movie palace in Los Angeles’ Highland Park neighborhood that shut its doors in 2024.

“I didn’t realize I was looking for a theater until this place came to my attention. Then it was like a gunshot went off and the race was on. I ran toward it with everything I had,” Stewart said. “I’m fascinated by broken-down old theaters. I always want to see what mysteries they hold.”

Stewart’s representatives did not immediately respond to IndieWire’s request for comment.

The Highland Theatre was designed by architect Lewis Arthur Smith, who was also responsible for iconic L.A. theaters like the Rialto and the Vista, which was recently restored by Quentin Tarantino.

Stewart stressed that her iteration of the theater will be a community-centric space for cinephiles that treats cinema as something separate from corporate profit motives.

“It’s an opportunity to make a space to gather and scheme and dream together. This project is about creating a new school and restructuring our processes, finding a better way forward. We want to make it a family affair, something for the community. It’s not just for pretentious Hollywood cinephiles,” she said. “I see it as an antidote to all the corporate bullshit, a place that takes movie culture away from just buying and selling. I think there’s a huge desire and craving for what this kind of space can offer.”

While Stewart did not offer a timeline for reopening the venue, she teased that a lengthy renovation process will be necessary to restore the Highland’s period architecture while updating it for modern audiences.

“There are so many beautiful details that need to be restored,” she said. “I think there’s a way to bring the building back to life in a way that embraces its history but also brings something new to the neighborhood and something new to the whole LA film community. That’s the point—new ideas.”