San Francisco movie goers urge new Castro Theatre owners to reconsider venue's future

SAN FRANCISCO - Movie lovers gathered outside of San Francisco's Castro Theatre Sunday to urge the new owners to reconsider the theatre's future.

Last week the owners of the 100-year-old movie house announced a partnership with concert promoter, Another Planet Entertainment (APE), to upgrade the theatre. 

Many longtime patrons expressed concern that the venue will expand to include live events and not just movie screenings.

"The Castro Theatre is an icon of the LGBTQ community, a treasured space for film, music and live performance and a wonderful building that we will upgrade for more use in the future," said Gregg Perloff, CEO of APE. 

"We want to present all sorts of programming in the theater – comedy, music, film, community and private events and more," said Perloff. "We look forward to further contributing to the culture and economy of this vibrant and diverse neighborhood, and involving the community in our planning."

The Spanish Baroque-style building with the Art Deco marquee was made a San Francisco historic landmark in 1977. 

The theatre has gone from screening silent movies to international film festivals, and most recently hosted The Matrix Resurrections.