‘Charlie’s Angels’ director McG drops $14.7 million on famed Bella Vista estate
In one of Beverly Crest’s biggest deals so far this year, director Joseph McGinty Nichol, better known as McG, has paid $14.7 million for the iconic Bella Vista estate. He bought it from actress Donna Scott.
The sale ends a six-year marketing journey for the 95-year-old Spanish villa. It first surfaced for sale in 2015 for $42.5 million along with seven acres of land. With no takers, the price and land size were steadily reduced; it most recently listed earlier this year for $15.5 million on one acre.
It’s a natural landing place for McG, director of the films “Charlie’s Angels,” “We Are Marshall” and “Terminator Salvation.” Since the home was built in 1926, a parade of actors and filmmakers from different eras of cinema have lived there.
Scott, who starred in the films “Déjà Vu” and “Domino,” owned the home with her husband Tony Scott, the director of “Top Gun” and “True Romance,” who died in 2012. It was built for prolific director King Vidor and later owned by John Barrymore, the stage and screen legend whose film career spanned the silent and talkie eras.
Spanish Colonial Revival-style master John Byers designed the place, and his signature work is on full display across the compound complete with a main house, two guest cottages, a bungalow and two-story guesthouse.
White stucco and clay tile adorn the main house, which opens to grand spaces with hand-painted murals, dramatic beams, arched doorways and ornate fireplaces. Highlights include a wine cellar, cigar room, bar and an aviary that was converted into a two-story space with more than 3,000 square feet.
Upstairs, the primary suite adds a wraparound veranda and opium den accessed by a hand-carved ladder. It surveys the landscaped grounds dotted with gardens, fountains, koi ponds and a pool with a waterfall.
Kirby Gillon, Bryce Lowe and Aaron Kirman of Aaron Kirman Group at Compass held the listing. Billy Rose of the Agency represented McG.
McG, 53, rose to prominence with 2000’s “Charlie’s Angels” and also directed the sequel, “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle.” As a producer, his credits include “Supernatural,” “Chuck” and “The O.C.,” which were all created through his production company, Wonderland Sound and Vision.
