Horror genre mega-producer Jason Blum hopes to scare up a deep-pocketed buyer (or renter) for his sleek, art-filled penthouse at the Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles. After it was briefly available last summer at almost $7 million, it’s now back up for grabs at exactly $7 million. And, for those averse to a multimillion-dollar commitment, the contemporary spread also available as a high-end rental at $20,000 a month, according to listings held by on-site agent Yvonne Arias Neustadter of The Property Lab.
The thrice Oscar nominated “Whiplash,” “Get Out” and “BlacKkKlansman” producer, whose Blumhouse Productions is nothing short of legendary for its growing stable of money-minting micro-budget horror franchises such as “Paranormal Activity” “Happy Death Day” and “Insidious,” purchased the clean-lined and light-flooded penthouse in 2016 for $6.7 million from Tinseltown power couple Mary Hart and Burt Sugarman.
Floor-to-ceiling walls of glass provide cinematic city, mountain and sunset views that stretch clear over the city to the Pacific Ocean, while high-gloss wood floors amp up the glamour of the three-bedroom and four-bath condo that, at close to 4,300 square feet, is the size of a suburban Macmansion.
The minimally but colorfully furnished combination living and dining room, which includes a glossy teal picnic-style table and benches, takes its spirited color cues from a large painting (or print) from Roy Lichtenstein’s Interior Series, while the adjacent eat-in kitchen’s chatoyant white laminate cabinetry is complemented by sleek appliances and offset by dark stone countertops. With two walls of glass, the spacious family room just off the kitchen is an urban nest that showcases an Andy Warhol Brillo Box sculpture and what appears to be (but may not actually be) an Ilya Iopushansky camouflage painting.
Both guest bedrooms are roomy and en suite, while the primary bedroom is generously large with a travertine-tiled bath and a custom-fitted walk-in closet.
Residents of The Ritz-Carlton Residences at L.A. Live pay searingly high monthly fees — in the case of the Blum penthouse it’s more than $4,800 per month — to be pampered with a plethora of white glove services that include extensive security, valet parking and access to the hotel’s room service and housekeeping. Myriad recreational and leisure amenities of the five-star complex include a conference/dining room, a screening room, a billiards room with glass pool table, and a rooftop swimming pool with private cabanas.
Blum and his wife, Lauren Schuker Blum, have become property gossip staples as they’ve radically changed up their impressive property portfolio over the last year. Even before they sold a huge and historic mansion in L.A.’s Fremont Place late last year for $11 million, they ponied up $14.3 million dollars for a quirky and heavily fortified Frank Gehry-designed (and Mark Mack re-designed) compound in Santa Monica and plunked down another $9.8 million in another off-market deal for a stunning Baxt Ingui Architects re-worked townhouse in New York City’s historic Brooklyn Heights neighborhood.