Both of Westwood's working movie screens now run on walk-up tickets. The Bruin Theater reopened on Broxton Avenue on Friday, October 23, and it sells tickets only at its outdoor box office. A mile south on Wilshire, the UCLA Film & Television Archive's free fall season at the Hammer Museum takes no advance reservations at all. The Village Theatre's 1,341-seat auditorium across Broxton from the Bruin is closed again. That leaves two good screens this season, and neither will sell you a seat online. You get in by showing up.
For anyone who lives within walking distance of Broxton and Weyburn, that's an advantage. Here is how each screen works right now.
The Bruin sells its tickets at the curb
On opening night, the Daily Bruin reported that tickets for LAIKA's stop-motion film "Wildwood" were sold only at the box office outside the theater. Crowds collected on the sidewalk at the corner of Broxton and Weyburn for showings at 7 p.m., 9:30 p.m. and 11:45 p.m. The theater runs one film at a time. "Wildwood" was followed by "Fjord," which played through November 5. Student tickets for "Wildwood" were $15. Students at the screening told the paper the same movie cost more than $20 at the AMC in Century City.
The theater's new operator holds a 10-year lease, signed in July. In August, the Daily Bruin described the plan: new releases Friday through Sunday, older and classic films Monday through Thursday, plus hoped-for premieres and private rentals. Michael Russell, executive director of the Westwood Village Improvement Association, told the paper that reopening the Bruin is an important step in bringing more business to the Village. He remembered seeing films like "Batman" there as a child, then dinner, Diddy Riese ice cream or the arcade afterward, and said he looks forward to giving his son the same nights.
The current film is posted at the box office and at bruinwestwood.com.
What came back inside the Bruin
The building at 948 Broxton Avenue is a 1937 Streamline Moderne theater designed by S. Charles Lee. It sat dark for two years after closing in 2024, the same year the Fox Westwood Village across the street closed. According to LA Magazine, the reopening brought a new roof, repaired neon, and new digital projectors alongside vintage 35mm and 70mm equipment for revival prints. In August, the Daily Bruin reported that the existing seats would stay instead of being swapped for recliners.
The biggest change is on the side walls. Rotting blue drapes, which the operator believes went up in the 1950s, had covered original murals of lounging women, birds and neoclassical themes. LA Magazine reported that theater historians had spent years searching for photographs of the original auditorium without finding any. The murals were cleaned and otherwise left alone. A blacklight test suggested they may once have glowed in the dark. Staff spent weeks painting pillars, cleaning the interior and restoring the murals before opening night. So the auditorium people are walking into this fall looks closer to its 1937 condition than at any point in about seventy years.
Across Broxton, the Village Theatre is dark again
At 961 Broxton, the Fox Westwood Village opened on August 14, 1931. It was operated by Mann and later by Regency, and it closed as a regular cinema in July 2024 when the Regency lease expired. A group of 35 filmmakers called the Village Directors Circle bought it in 2024. Jason Reitman leads the group, which also includes Christopher Nolan, J.J. Abrams, Guillermo del Toro, Judd Apatow, Steven Spielberg and Chloé Zhao. The theater has been renamed Directors Village, and American Cinematheque is slated to operate and program it.
The theater had a busy temporary season this year. It started in May with the Los Angeles debut of Billie Eilish and James Cameron's concert film. Next came a July 70mm festival and a three-week 70mm run of Nolan's "The Odyssey" in July and August. The Daily Bruin reported general admission for that run at $23 through American Cinematheque. The late summer brought premieres, including "Digger" on September 28 with Tom Cruise in attendance. The last event was an October 3 screening of "Miami Vice: Director's Final Cut."
In June, the Los Angeles Times reported a $25 million, 12-month restoration set to begin this fall. The plans include a restaurant, a bar, a gallery and a multipurpose lobby space for filmmakers and premiere events. The theater-history site Los Angeles Theatres gave a later status in October. The building was closed and awaiting renovation, no permits had been issued, and the project hadn't yet gone before the city's Cultural Heritage Commission. Gensler is now the architect, and the site reports that the team expects to reopen in 2028. Until then, the Bruin is the only working marquee at that intersection.
The free screen on Wilshire runs on the same rule
The UCLA Film & Television Archive's fall season at the Billy Wilder Theater, inside the Hammer Museum at 10899 Wilshire Boulevard, runs through December 20. Every screening is free. According to the Archive's theater page, there are no advance reservations. Seats are assigned first come, first served when you pick up tickets at the box office, which opens one hour before showtime. Hammer members get priority until 15 minutes before the film starts.
| Bruin Theater | Billy Wilder Theater | Directors Village | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Address | 948 Broxton Ave. | 10899 Wilshire Blvd. | 961 Broxton Ave. |
| Status this fall | Open since Oct. 23 | Free fall season through Dec. 20 | Closed for renovation |
| How you get in | Outdoor box office only | Box office opens 1 hour before showtime | Not screening |
| Price on record | $15 student ticket for "Wildwood" | Free | $23 for "The Odyssey" this summer |
| Parking | AirGarage at 900 Broxton, from $4 an hour | Hammer garage, $9 flat after 5 p.m. weekdays and all weekend with validation | None needed |
The rest of the season, as listed on the Archive's calendar:
- Nov. 14, 7:30 p.m.: "Borders That Flower"
- Nov. 15, 7 p.m.: Archive Talks, "Trans Cinema"
- Nov. 18, 7:30 p.m.: Archive Talks, "Trouble in Paradise"
- Nov. 21, 7:30 p.m.: Archive Television Treasures, "Hollywood Squares"
- Nov. 22, 11 a.m.: "Tōhoku Documentary Trilogy," the final program of the Ryusuke Hamaguchi: Early Works retrospective
- Dec. 2, 9, 13, 19 and 20: the Dorothy Dandridge retrospective
- Dec. 5 and 6: The Art of the Benshi 2026
- Dec. 12, 7:30 p.m.: Archive Television Treasures, "Go Tell It on the Mountain"
- Dec. 16, 7:30 p.m.: "A War on Women"
With no reservations and a box office that opens an hour ahead, the Dandridge evenings and the Benshi weekend go to whoever arrives first. That's easier for someone coming a few blocks than for someone driving across town.
Building the night around the box office
Because both open screens sell seats only in person, the evening starts at the ticket window, and the hour before the film is free for something else. Diddy Riese, at 926 Broxton, is a few doors from the Bruin. Its menu lists cookies at 75 cents and ice cream sandwiches at $5, and it's closed Mondays. SFGate reported the same prices in August 2025.
Two places opened this fall that work for dinner or coffee beforehand. Niki Wong opened 26 Pho Cafe at 1067 Glendon Avenue on October 4, serving pho, bánh mì and vermicelli dishes, as the Daily Bruin reported. On Broxton, Sana'a Cafe serves Yemeni-inspired coffee, tea and pastries at 939 Broxton Avenue, a short walk from the Bruin's box office.
If you drive, the Westwood Village Improvement Association lists AirGarage parking at 900 Broxton, starting at $4 an hour and $12 a day. For the Hammer, the garage's $9 flat evening and weekend rate with validation covers most Archive screenings. In its October 2026 schedule, Metro forecasts D Line service to the Westwood/UCLA station in fall 2027 and says that date is subject to change.
If you'd like to talk over the blocks within walking distance of Broxton and Weyburn, or what owning near a working movie palace means for your plans, Marlyse Scherr would be glad to hear from you. Let's connect.
