San Francisco’s Castro Theatre to reopen in early 2026 with different look

By Kelsi Thorud

After what has become a multi-year renovation, the historic Castro Theatre in San Francisco has finally set a reopening date.

“I’m very excited. It’s been closed far too long. So excited to see it back open,” said a man named John who did not provide his last name.

The theatre, which closed back in February of 2024, will reopen in February of 2026 with a bit of a different look.

The new owners, Another Planet Entertainment, who own several venues across the Bay, have ripped out the old theater seating on the main level to make way for a more modern multi-use space.

“I love the Castro Theatre. I love the architecture, the nostalgia and I think it’s great they’re investing so much money into it for the community,” said Brook Margraves, as they walked by the theatre.

But even before the renovation began, not everyone was so excited for the change.

A large contingency of theatre goers fought APE to keep the original seating in the theatre.

After a drawn-out battle, they lost, but even over a year later now some people still have a bitter taste in their mouth.

“I just think that APE, Another Planet Entertainment, did a really bad job about community outreach, so they made the whole process so much harder for themselves. If they had actually talked to the community, it might have been a smoother path instead, they just brought in lobbyists and talked to the supervisors and they pissed the community off basically,” said Tori Tait, outside the theatre.

APE says the new layout will help bring the theatre into the future, allowing for more than just films to be played in the space, but also concerts and comedy shows.

The company says its goal has always been to preserve the history of the building while helping to revitalize it.

Still, some worry the new owners may change more than the building.

The historic venue was known for playing classic, indie, and queer films many other theaters didn’t.

Even though the space will be different now, many want that programming to stay.

“I think if the Castro’s going to reopen and do a reasonable amount of the old films like they used to do before, I think that’s great. But if it’s going to shift everything to music concerts and other kind of events and less of the movies, then I’m not as excited about it,” said Ricardo Hernandez in front of the theatre.

For now, we’ll just have to wait and see. 

APE says it will be announcing the first line-up of shows soon.

And while the divide over the excitement for its reopening still remains, some are hopeful that things will begin to mend once the venue actually opens.

“I think when people see the product and when they see what they deliver, they’ll be happy with it,” said Margraves.