The Revue Film Society, the non-profit organization that operates the beloved Revue Cinema in Toronto’s west end, announced Tuesday that it has reached a new lease agreement with building owners Danny and Letty Mullin.
The news comes some two months after the Society won an interim court injunction preventing the landlords from shuttering Toronto’s oldest running cinema.
In August, the Ontario Superior Court granted an extension to the injunction that was expected to last until October.
But the tension between the Revue Film Society and the landlords now seems squarely in the past.
“We’re so grateful for the continued support of the building’s owners, Danny and Letty Mullins, without whom none of this would be possible,” Grant Oyston, Chair of the Revue, told the Star.
“And to John Tory, who was incredibly generous with his time. His support as a mediator was invaluable in helping us get to a resolution that we’re all thrilled about.”
The future of the Revue was thrown into question in June, when, following months of negotiations to renew the landmark cinema’s lease, landlord Daniel Mullin unexpectedly told the cinema’s staff that he planned to take over the operation and turn it into a for-profit initiative.
At the time, Oyston pledged that the board of directors would not go down without a fight.
The threat of the Revue closing sent an immediate ripple of panic through the city’s embattled arts community. In response, film lovers, community members, local politicians — and even Guillermo del Toro — rallied around the Revue, in an attempt to protect the Revue from what one popular petition described as “the demands of an unreasonable, profit-driven landlord.”
However, the language in the joint press release seems to signal an amicable repair to that relationship.
“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,” the press release read.
“The Society has not, and does not, endorse any statements suggesting otherwise. Negotiations, even between long-standing 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.”
“We extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has supported the Revue, and we look forward to many more years of cinematic magic.”
Will Sloan, a Toronto-based film critic and journalist, is a regular at the Revue. “I’m always impressed at how busy it is, even for movies that are more offbeat and esoteric,” he told the Star. “It speaks to how connected the programmers have to their audience, and to the world around them.”
For Sloan, the news of a renewed lease agreement “feels like a rare case of the good guys winning.”
“There was a whole new spirit at the events I attended this summer — a feeling of everyone wanting to rally around something good, and not wanting it to go without a fight,” Sloan said. “The theatre’s managers and programmers were savvy in how they used social media to foster support, but so much of the energy was truly spontaneous and grassroots.”
Corey Atad, a freelance journalist and movie critic, called the news “a huge relief and a gratifying moment for moviegoing in Toronto.”
“In a time when it’s more likely to see cultural spaces neglected and shut down, it’s wonderful to know the Revue will continue going strong, and hopefully even stronger over time.”
You can check out the Revue’s upcoming programming revuecinema.ca.
