LA wildfires: Hollywood stars lose their homes as ferocious blaze burns them to the ground

Some of Hollywood’s biggest stars have lost their homes in the ferocious wildfires that have razed large swathes of southern Los Angeles.

Five people have died, 100,000 people have been evacuated, 1100 buildings have burnt to the ground and hundreds of thousands more are without power as fires rip through thousands of hectares of Los Angeles land.

The biggest of the out-of-control blazes is tearing through the wealthy coastal community of Pacific Palisades, home to A-listers including Steven Spielberg, Reese Witherspoon, Tom Hanks, and Miley Cyrus.

Now, less than 48 hours after many celebs frocked up to attend the glitzy Golden Globe awards at the nearby Beverly Hills Hotel — which itself has transformed into an evacuation hub amid the fires— some stars’ home have been destroyed.

Actor James Woods, known for roles including Casino and The Virgin Suicides, shared footage of the fire approaching his home before he evacuated.

Hours later, his home’s smoke detectors were alerting his phone to a fire at the property. He said he had lost “everything”.

“I couldn’t believe our lovely little home in the hills held on this long. It feels like losing a loved one,” he wrote on X.

“It tests your soul, losing everything at once.”

Actor and singer Mandy Moore (This Is Us) took to Instagram to tell her followers she and her family had evacuated their home in nearby Eaton.

Hours later, she shared footage showing her home in Altadena had been “levelled” by the fire.

“Honestly, I’m in shock and feeling numb for all so many have lost, including my family. My children’s school is gone. Our favorite restaurants, leveled,” Moore wrote on Wednesday.

“So many friends and loved ones have lost everything too. Our community is broken but we will be here to rebuild together.”

Hotel heiress Paris Hilton’s beachfront home also burned to the ground in fire. She posted footage of the still smouldering property to Instagram, writing she was “heartbroken beyond words”.

“This home was where we built so many precious memories,” she wrote.

“It’s where Phoenix (her son) took his first steps and where we dreamed of building a lifetime of memories with London (her daughter).

“While the loss is overwhelming, I’m holding onto gratitude that my family and pets are safe. My heart and prayers are going out to every family affected by these fires. To all the people who have lost their homes, their memories, and their beloved pets. My heartaches for those still in harm’s way or mourning greater losses.

“The devastation is unimaginable. To know so many are waking up today without the place they called home is truly heartbreaking.”

Hilton said her team had reached out to nonprofit organisations to offer help and make “a meaningful difference” for affected communities.

She also paid special thanks to first responders on the front lines: “you are true heroes”.

“I am so grateful for your courage, dedication, and the incredible sacrifices you’re making to save lives and fight this unimaginable battle,” she wrote.

“We’re in this together, LA. Hug your loved ones a little tighter tonight. You never know when everything could change.”

TMZ also reported actor Ben Affleck fled to ex-wife Jennifer Garner’s home after being evacuated from the fires.

Mark Hamill, famous for playing Star Wars’ jedi Luke Skywalker, shared details of his family’s “last-minute” evacuation from Malibu. He said these fires were the ”most horrific” he’d seen since the California fires of 1993.

Nobody Wants This star Adam Brody and wife, Gossip Girl lead, Leighton Meester’s $6.5 million mansion has also been razed, with images showing the three-storey home and its gardens alight.

The Hills reality star Heidi Montag and her partner Spencer Pratt also lost their home in the fires. Pratt shared an image of their son’s charred bed to Instagram.

“The one positive sign I saw as our house burned down was ours sons bed burned in the shape of a heart,” he wrote.

“A sign of how much love was in this house so thankful for all the years and memories there with our family.”

Pratt’s sister Stephanie wrote that their father tried to save the home but “the wind is so strong there was nothing he could do”.

“Even the fire station in the palisades has burned down. The Pacific Palisades is completely on fire,” she wrote.

Veteran actor Jamie Lee Curtis shared horrific images of her neighbourhood after the blaze to Instagram.

“Our beloved neighbourhood is gone. Our home is safe. So many others have lost everything,” she wrote.

“It is a terrifying situation and I’m grateful to the firefighters and all of the good Samaritans who are helping people get out of the way of the blaze.”

Actor Billy Crystal has also been caught in the tragedy, with the fires destroying the house he and wife Janice had lived and raised their family in over almost 50 years.

The comedian told CNN: “Words cannot describe the enormity of the devastation we are witnessing and experiencing. We ache for our friends and neighbors who have also lost their homes and businesses in this tragedy”.

“Janice and I lived in our home since 1979. We raised our children and grandchildren here. Every inch of our house was filled with love. Beautiful memories that can’t be taken away.

“We are heartbroken of course but with the love of our children and friends we will get through this. We pray for the safety of the fire fighters and first responders. The Pacific Palisades is a resilient community of amazing people and we know in time it will rise again. It is our home.”

Underworld star Kate Beckinsale shared a heartbroken post after evacuating the Palisade fire, saying her daughter had lost “most of her childhood”.

“Her primary school, every shop or restaurant we used to go to with my parents and Michael’s parents — and devastatingly, most of her friends homes,” Beckinsale wrote.

“My heart is broken. The Pacific Palisades is a community very unusual to find in Los Angeles, heavy on families with young children and pets. I’m weeping for all of the people and pets involved, so many of them I know.

“This is just like hell.”

TMZ reported that Scary Movie star Anna Faris has also lost her home to the fires.

And while many have evacuated, some have stuck around to help their neighbours.

TMZ released images of actor Ashton Kutcher hosing down plants at a house in Pacific Palisades to prevent the fire.

Meanwhile, some stars found themselves stuck in the traffic jam on Palisades Drive — one of the few roads in and out of the community — as residents evacuated.

Honorary mayor of the neighbourhood, actor Eugene Levy, found himself among the crowd. He told the LA Times he “couldn’t see any flames but the smoke was very dark”.

Because of the bottleneck, many residents abandoned their cars on the road and fled on foot, blocking the road to the fire front.

While some cars were pushed aside by heavy machinery, Police Academy actor Steve Guttenberg, who lives nearby, had spent time moving the cars himself.

“We really need people to move their cars,” he told KTLA5.

“What’s happening is people take their keys with them as if they are in a parking lot. This is not a parking lot,” he explained.

“If you leave your car behind, leave the key in there so guys like me can move your car so that these fire trucks can get up there.”

More than 400,000 homes across Los Angeles had lost power because of the fires. Thousands were reporting intermittent outages.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have also reportedly had their power cut at their $46 million Montecito estate and may also be forced to evacuate if the fires continue to burn out of control.

Southern California Edison (SCE) confirmed it was considering a “public safety power shutoff” in parts of Santa Barbara County, where the Oprah Winfrey also resides, due to the wildfire risk.

Oscars, Critics Choice — Hollywood events interrupted

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences have extended the Oscars nominations voting period, which opened today, by two days in response to the wildfires. The nominations were set to be announced on January 17 and has been pushed back to January 19.

Academy chief executive Bill Kramer wrote to members, as reported by CNN, “We want to offer our deepest condolences to those who have been impacted by the devastating fires across southern California.

“So many of our members and industry colleagues live and work in the Los Angeles area, and we are thinking of you.”

A raft of Hollywood events have been cancelled or postponed including Oscars panels and screenings, premieres for movies including The Last Showgirl, Wolf Man, Better Man, Unstoppable and TV show The Pitt.

The Critics Choice and AARP Movies for Grown-ups award ceremonies have been postponed while production has been suspended on more than a dozen series including Grey’s Anatomy, Hacks, Suits LA, Loot, NCIS and Abbott Elementary.

The Academy Museum and Universal Studios theme park are both closed while Disney shut its Burbank headquarters and as did Warner Bros its studio lot. Burbank is close to the Eaton fire.

Additional reporting from Wenlei Ma.