L.A.’s historic Bruin Theater met its ambitious fall reopening goal on Friday, October 23, but its return is already facing a challenge from the companies behind its first attraction. LAIKA and Fathom Entertainment say they have taken legal action to prevent Bruin from showing “Wildwood.”
The film was first advertised as a week-long commercial newly reopened Westwood venue. But in a joint statement provided exclusively to IndieWire, the animation studio and its theatrical distribution partner said that concerns about operator Rui Pereira’s history of controversial comments and behavior led them to end the screening.
“When LAIKA learned of Bruin’s engagement, we immediately raised concerns with our theatrical distribution partner Fathom Entertainment. LAIKA and Fathom initiated legal action to end screenings of the film in theaters,” the companies said in an email.
“We have not yet received confirmation that screenings have been discontinued. We are continuing to explore our options, as the theater operator’s concerns are inconsistent with the values of both of our companies.” IndieWire independently confirmed that screenings of “Wildwood” were continuing at the Bruin through at least Sunday afternoon, October 25, and at the time of publication. theater website There are still advertised daily screenings at 1:30pm, 4pm, 7pm and 9:30pm
Laika and Fathom Entertainment did not disclose what kind of legal action they have taken to stop the release of their film. On a phone call with IndieWire, Perera asked how we received the cease-and-desist letter. IndieWire neither received nor reviewed any such letter and told Perera that we have communicated directly with the companies. He added, “You guys are assholes. Everything you wrote is a lie.”
The controversy presents an immediate programming problem for Pereira’s revived movie palace, which reopens with “Wildwood” in July 2024 after being in the dark since the departure of Regency Theatres. It also follows months of investigation involving Pereira, whose rocky history running Toronto’s Kingsway Theater became the subject of an IndieWire investigation on September 3.
Previous reporting by IndieWire examined allegations of assault, non-payment, racial discrimination, online harassment and unauthorized film screenings. The reporting is based on interviews with more than 25 sources in the US and Canada, as well as court records, digital correspondence, social media posts and years of advertised Kingsway screenings, some rights holders say they did not authorize. Perera has widely denied those allegations and characterized the ongoing investigation into his businesses as an attempt to undermine his work as an exhibitor.
Perera then said, “There are no disputes and any attempt to create them is dishonest and fraudulent.” “The Bruin Theater is a gift not only to Los Angeles, but to the world – a cultural heritage site that unites generations of moviegoers in the cinema experience.”
Several journalists have described being targeted by Perera after publishing critical coverage or removing Kingsway from their reporting. Speaking with IndieWire over the phone on October 26 and subsequently in an email, Pereira referred to IndieWire’s staff as “presstitutes” and accused the publication of receiving payments to write negatively about him.
Two volunteers left the Bruin restoration project in August after posts related to the Kingsway account circulated among Los Angeles moviegoers. Screenshots reviewed by IndieWire included racist and anti-Semitic comments, as well as exchanges targeting individual patrons. Sources also described a pattern of threats and prolonged retaliation, alleging that Pereira continued to target some critics online for months or years after his initial controversies.
When asked by hollywood reporter In an August 23 report about some specific Kingsway posts – one of which stated the goal was to “go back to Poland” and another described a swastika painted on a Jewish family’s home as “a symbol appropriate for Zionists” – Pereira acknowledged that the comments were “offensive” and said he “must take responsibility.”
The current controversy over “Wildwood” also follows separate questions about Kingsway’s programming. IndieWire had previously identified 55 advertised screenings of 17 films that the three rights holders said they had not authorized at Perera’s Toronto theatre. Those findings came from a limited sample and did not establish that all or even most of the Kingsway screenings were unauthenticated. Perera earlier said, “There is no problem regarding film licensing or any controversy.”
In particular, LAIKA and Fathom’s statements do not reveal that Bruin’s “Wildwood” booking was unauthorized from the beginning. Rather, the companies say they sought to end Bruin screening over specific concerns about Pereira as an operator. “wild Wood” Opened in nearly 3,000 theaters across the countryAnd bookings on that scale are hardly every exhibitor’s support.
Nevertheless, independent theaters often form their identity based on the likability and reputation of the people who run them. At a beloved landmark like Bruin’s, affection for an old movie palace can translate into deep trust in the one who promises to save it. For now, the location has achieved the reopening goal promised by its new operator. Whether it can continue the performance of the film that brought back audiences is debatable.