The Revue Film Society is moving ahead on restoration plans for the Revue Cinema after securing a new five-year lease.

The non-profit organization that runs the historic Revue Cinema signed a new lease earlier this month following a dispute with the owners.

In June, Danny Mullin — who co-owns the venue with Letty Mullin — informed the Society that he would not be extending the lease and that he intended to run the independent theatre without the board.

Prior to the signing of the new lease, the Society was able to get an injunction to halt the eviction until Oct. 30, preventing the owners from interfering with operations until a trial could be held.

“The Mullins have always wanted the Revue Cinema to operate as an independent movie theatre and community landmark, a desire they share with the Revue Film Society,” read a joint statement from the Mullins and the Society. “Negotiations, even between longstanding partners, can often lead to misunderstandings, but the length and strength of our partnership with the Mullins and good faith on all sides allowed us to end up in a good place.”

Revue Film Society chair Grant Oyston tells Playback Daily the new lease and the security it provides will allow them to begin making improvements to the cinema.

“We’re able to embark on restoration of the façade of the building,” says Oyston. “Now that we have that certainty … we’ve been meeting with contractors starting [earlier this month].”

Oyston says the improvements also include replacing the theatre’s seats, though the façade is the most immediate priority.

Part of the Society’s plan for funding the improvements include an Oct. 3 screening of Guillermo del Toro’s 2015 film Crimson Peak with the Mexican director taking part in a Q&A afterwards. Del Toro had been an outspoken advocate for the Revue during the lease dispute.

“When we had planned it, it was kind of an emergency fundraiser,” says Oyston. “Now we’re able to have it as a celebration. The funds from that will entirely go to the restoration of the façade.”

Oyston says tickets for the event sold out in about an hour.

Built more than 110 years ago, the Revue Cinema is the oldest active movie theatre in Toronto and is a mainstay in the city’s West End. The Revue Film Society was founded in 2006 with the goal to keep the cinema operational when the prior owners announced their intentions to shutter the theatre. In 2007, Danny and Letty Mullin purchased the theatre and have been leasing it to the Society to operate for the past 17 years.

Picture by Lisa Amerongen