Century City CA is weird. Honestly, if you’re driving down Santa Monica Boulevard and suddenly see a cluster of gleaming steel skyscrapers rising out of the low-slung Los Angeles landscape like a futuristic mirage, you’ve found it. It’s a 176-acre neighborhood that feels completely different from the rest of LA. No palm-lined bungalows here. No gritty street art. Instead, you get a master-planned business hub that somehow manages to be both a corporate powerhouse and a luxury residential enclave.
Most people think of it as just a place where lawyers work. They aren't wrong—the place is crawling with them. But Century City is actually built on the literal bones of movie history.
The Fox Backlot That Became a Skyline
Before the skyscrapers, this was the 20th Century Fox backlot. Tom Mix, the silent film cowboy, used to own the land. In the late 1950s, Fox hit a massive financial wall. The production of Cleopatra (1963) was a bloated, expensive disaster that nearly bankrupted the studio. To save themselves, they sold off about 180 acres of their backlot to Alcoa, the aluminum giant, and developer William Zeckendorf.
That is why Century City looks the way it does.
It was a blank slate. They didn't have to navigate old city grids or existing neighborhoods. They just built "The City of the Future." You can still see the studio today—Fox (now owned by Disney) still occupies a chunk of the southwest corner—but the rest is a high-density marvel. It’s one of the few places in Los Angeles where you actually feel like you’re in a dense, vertical urban center, similar to parts of Manhattan or Singapore.
Architecture That Actually Matters
You can’t talk about Century City CA without mentioning Minoru Yamasaki. He’s the architect who designed the original World Trade Center in New York. In Century City, he gave us the Century Plaza Towers—those two massive triangular skyscrapers that dominate the skyline. They are iconic. Because of their unique shape, they look different from every angle.
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Then there’s the Die Hard building.
Okay, its real name is Fox Plaza. If you’ve seen the 1988 classic Die Hard, you know this building as Nakatomi Plaza. It was brand new when they filmed there. It serves as the headquarters for the studio and remains a pilgrimage site for action movie nerds. Interestingly, Ronald Reagan moved his private offices into the 34th floor of Fox Plaza after he left the White House.
The Myth of the "Ghost Town"
People used to joke that Century City was a "ghost town" after 5:00 PM. For decades, that was true. The lawyers and talent agents would hop in their Mercedes and Teslas and head home to Beverly Hills or Brentwood, leaving the streets eerie and empty.
That has changed.
The redevelopment of the Westfield Century City mall was a billion-dollar bet that paid off. It’s not just a mall; it’s basically an outdoor lifestyle park. You have Eataly, which is always packed. You have high-end cinemas. It’s become a destination for locals from all over the Westside.
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But it’s also becoming a residential heavyweight. The Century, a 42-story condo building, is where people like Rihanna and Candy Spelling have lived. We’re talking about penthouses that sell for over $20 million. When you have that much wealth living in a two-block radius, the neighborhood stops being a "9-to-5" district and starts becoming a 24-hour community.
Navigating the "Superblocks"
If you’re visiting Century City CA, the first thing you’ll notice is the scale. Everything is huge. The blocks are massive, often called "superblocks." This makes walking a bit of a workout. While the neighborhood is technically walkable, it’s designed for cars and grand entrances.
The street names are a dead giveaway of its origins. Avenue of the Stars. Constellation Boulevard. These aren't accidental. They reflect the Hollywood DNA that funded the entire project.
Where the Power Brokers Eat
Business in LA isn't done in boardrooms; it’s done over expensive salads. In Century City, the "power lunch" is still very much alive. Hinoki & the Bird is a standout—it’s hidden away in the base of a luxury condo building and serves travel-inspired silk-road dishes.
Then you have the Grill on the Alley (well, the nearby Beverly Hills original is famous, but the Century City spots hold their own). If you sit in the food court at the mall on a Tuesday at noon, you’ll see agents from CAA (Creative Artists Agency) wearing better suits than you’ll see at a wedding. CAA’s headquarters, often called the "Death Star" because of its imposing glass architecture, is the gravitational center of the entertainment industry.
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The Transit Revolution (Finally)
For a long time, Century City was an island. If you didn't have a car, you weren't getting there easily. That is currently being disrupted by the Purple (D Line) Extension.
The "Subway to the Sea" is finally bringing a heavy rail station to the heart of Century City. This is a massive deal. Los Angeles is notorious for its traffic, and the intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica is basically a parking lot during rush hour. By 2026-2027, you’ll be able to take a train from Downtown LA directly into the middle of the skyscrapers. This is expected to trigger another wave of development, likely more hotels and even denser housing.
Common Misconceptions About the Area
- "It’s just Beverly Hills Lite." Nope. Beverly Hills is about old money, boutiques, and tourists on Rodeo Drive. Century City is corporate, vertical, and focused on the business of entertainment and law.
- "There’s no green space." Actually, the Annenberg Space for Photography (when it was active) and the surrounding parks offer some of the cleanest, most manicured lawns in the city.
- "It’s only for rich people." While it’s definitely upscale, the mall is a public space that draws a massive, diverse crowd from all over LA. It’s one of the few places where you’ll see a billionaire and a teenager from the Valley in the same line for Shake Shack.
Why It Still Matters in 2026
Century City CA represents a specific vision of Los Angeles that refused to die. While other parts of the city struggle with aging infrastructure, Century City keeps reinventing itself. It’s clean. It’s safe. It’s insanely expensive.
It also serves as a hedge for the film industry. Even as streaming changes how movies are made, the legal and financial backbone of that industry needs a place to sit. Century City is that place. It’s the "back office" of Hollywood, and as long as people want to be famous, this neighborhood will thrive.
How to Do Century City Right
If you find yourself in this corner of the Westside, don't just drive through it on your way to Santa Monica. There’s a specific way to experience the scale of the place without feeling like you’re just in a giant office park.
- Visit Fox Plaza at sunset. You can’t go inside without an appointment, but seeing the "Nakatomi Plaza" glowing in the late afternoon sun is a rite of passage for film fans.
- Walk the "Avenue of the Stars" bridges. These pedestrian bridges give you that "Blade Runner" feel as you look down at the traffic below.
- Eat at Eataly early. If you wait until 7:00 PM on a Friday, you’re looking at a two-hour wait. Go for a late lunch instead.
- Check out the Century Plaza Hotel. It recently underwent a massive $2.5 billion renovation. The lobby is a masterclass in modern luxury and a great place to people-watch.
- Park at the mall, but check your validation. Parking in Century City is notoriously expensive. Some lots charge upwards of $40 a day. The mall offers the best rates if you’re actually shopping or eating there.
Century City isn't the "soul" of Los Angeles—that belongs to places like Echo Park or Boyle Heights—but it is the "brain" and the "wallet." It’s a fascinating, gleaming example of what happens when Hollywood money meets mid-century urban planning. Whether you love the corporate aesthetic or find it a bit sterile, you can't deny that it’s one of the most successful master-planned districts in the United States.