The Hollywood Hills estate hides a soundstage, film vaults and blast-resistant doors—and once produced footage of atomic bomb tests.
ByBernadette Giacomazzo
September 1, 2026
Key Takeaways
- Jared Leto sold his former Lookout Mountain Air Force Station compound in Los Angeles for $12 million after buying it for $5 million in 2015.
- The 14,649-square-foot Cold War-era property features a soundstage, three screening rooms, film vaults, blast-resistant doors and a history of producing classified military films.
- The sale closed before a BBC documentary detailed allegations of sexual assault, coercion and statutory rape against Leto, who said, “These claims are absolutely and categorically false.”
Jared Leto has quietly sold one of Los Angeles’ strangest celebrity homes as sexual misconduct allegations continue to follow him.
The Oscar-winning actor and Thirty Seconds to Mars frontman unloaded the former Lookout Mountain Air Force Station in May for $12 million The sale gave Leto a sizable return on the $5 million he paid for the property in 2015—and ended his decade-long ownership of a Hollywood Hills compound with a past closer to Oppenheimer than Selling Sunset
Spread across 1.4 acres, the six-bedroom, five-bathroom property contains 14,649 square feet of living and production space. Its unusual amenities include a full soundstage, three 35-millimeter screening rooms and temperature-controlled film vaults. The fortified estate also features thick concrete walls, blast-resistant doors and remnants of the infrastructure once used to protect classified government material.
The compound’s history is even longer than its footprint. Originally constructed in 1941 as a radar facility, Lookout Mountain later became a secret military film studio operated by the Air Force’s 1352nd Photographic Group. From 1947 until 1969, filmmakers stationed there produced footage of atomic bomb tests, military training films, and Cold War newsreels.
Some of Hollywood’s biggest stars also passed through the installation. Bob Hope, Jimmy Stewart, James Garner, Kim Novak, Gregory Peck and Ronald Reagan were among the entertainers who appeared in or narrated government productions created there.
Leto eventually transformed the once-classified facility into a private home and creative headquarters used by himself and Thirty Seconds to Mars.
News of the sale arrives during a turbulent stretch for Jared Leto. The transaction closed roughly two months before the BBC released Jared Leto: Hollywood’s Dark Secret, a documentary featuring 10 women who described alleged encounters with him between 2002 and 2016.
Four accused Leto of conduct that could be considered criminal, including sexual assault, coercion and statutory rape. The BBC said it corroborated portions of several accounts through friends and relatives, as well as photographs and messages.
The documentary followed a 2025 Air Mail report in which nine women accused Leto of inappropriate sexual behavior, with some alleging they were underage at the time. Leto has denied the accusations.
“I have never sexually assaulted anyone in my entire life,” he said after the BBC film premiered. “These claims are absolutely and categorically false.”
The controversy has also reportedly reached Leto’s career. Page Six previously reported that he lost a prospective role in Barry Levinson’s political thriller Assassination as the allegations mounted.
Oneroducers moved forward without him. His representatives did not comment on that report
No reason for the sale has been publicly confirmed, and the buyer has not been identified.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, confidential support is available through RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline. Call 800-656-HOPE (4673), text HOPE to 64673, or use RAINN’s online chat.
