Alamo Drafthouse Cinema will rename its historic San Francisco theater, the New Mission, as the Christopher Nolan Cinema, the company announced. The tribute honors the Academy Award-winning filmmaker and arrives just before the July 17 release of his new film, The Odyssey, as the theater marks its 110th anniversary.
The renaming follows the recent ticket launch for the 70mm and premium large-format run of The Odyssey, Nolan’s mythic action epic from Universal Pictures starring Matt Damon. Tickets are on sale now, with screenings offered in 70mm, 35mm, and the theater’s Big Show large format.
Alamo Drafthouse said the honor recognizes Nolan’s work on film preservation, theatrical exhibition, and large-format presentation. The company plans to commemorate the renaming later this year at a 70mm screening event in San Francisco that Nolan will attend and guest curate.
“San Francisco’s New Mission is a beautiful, historic, iconic cinema with more than a century of rich history,” Nolan said in a statement. “To be recognized in this way by Alamo Drafthouse, and with this particular theater which continues the great tradition of showing films on 70mm film, is an incredible honour.”
Nolan joins a group of filmmakers and performers whose names appear on Alamo Drafthouse locations, including Spike Lee, John Hughes, Ivan Reitman, Bong Joon Ho, and Pam Grier.
“By dedicating New Mission in Mr. Nolan’s name, we’re celebrating and thanking a filmmaker whose work has consistently championed cinema not merely as entertainment, but as a cultural inheritance worth protecting,” said Michael Kustermann, Alamo Drafthouse chief executive. “The same auditorium that ran silent movies in 1916 now has both 70mm celluloid projection sitting beside Barco’s state-of-the-art laser projector.”
Manijeh Fata, executive director of Film SF, the San Francisco Film Commission, welcomed the tribute. “From our iconic streets and architecture to our historic theaters and exhibition venues, film is woven into the fabric of this city,” she said. “Nolan’s commitment to theatrical exhibition and the moviegoing experience makes this honor especially fitting.”
A century of San Francisco film history
The New Mission Theater opened on May 4, 1916, and received its Art Deco design during a 1932 remodel by Timothy Pflueger, whose Bay Area portfolio includes the Castro Theatre, Oakland’s Paramount Theatre, and the Bay Bridge.
The theater went dark in 1993 and sat vacant for more than two decades. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001 and designated San Francisco Landmark No. 245 in 2004. When it reopened as an Alamo Drafthouse on December 17, 2015, it screened movies for the first time in 22 years. The 2015 restoration recreated the original paint palette and 1930s carpeting, preserved surviving murals, and revived Pflueger’s landmark Art Deco promenade. A further renovation in 2026 added new seats and carpeting throughout the building.
Inside The Odyssey
Filmed across multiple international locations with new IMAX technology, The Odyssey is a mythic action epic based on Homer’s foundational saga. The ensemble cast is led by Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong’o, Samantha Morton, and Charlize Theron.
Nolan wrote and directed the film, which is produced by Emma Thomas and Nolan under their Syncopy banner. The project continues Nolan’s partnership with Universal following the 2023 release of Oppenheimer, which earned close to $1 billion worldwide and won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. Across films that include Oppenheimer, Tenet, Dunkirk, Interstellar, Inception, and The Dark Knight trilogy, Nolan’s work has earned more than $6 billion at the global box office and 18 Oscars from 49 nominations.
Alamo Drafthouse, founded in 1997 as a single-screen repertory theater in Austin, Texas, now operates 40 locations nationwide. The company said dedication events for the Christopher Nolan Cinema will be announced later this year.