Sydney Sweeney bought the decrepit mansion of a famous director and I obviously worked the estate sale

In 2023 Sydney Sweeney purchased a home with then fiancé Jonathan Davino. They bought it at auction for $6.2 million, $250,000 over the asking price. Guess what I was doing at that time? I was in Sydney Sweeney’s soon to be project, shooting the upcoming estate sale. I even worked a couple of the sale days. Opening day had people stampeding for old Hollywood mementos, jewelry, and a specific $40 frog themed dish set.

The house was old old…peeling wallpaper, sink only worked if you gave it a shove. The pool lit up lime green. Next door was a lego block of a home, the trees around it looked like they were retreating. It stuck out like a 30 yr old at Brandy Melville.

Despite everything about her, I sort of…don’t want to jinx it…think Sydney wants to restore the home?

I say that with hope. It’s been three years and the only permit they’ve applied for is to renovate the pool, seemingly just an upgrade with a spa and solar-heating system. If a demo was in the plans, you’d think she would have done it by now.

She also kept some pretty crucial pieces to the history of this home and its long-term occupants.

It was once the home of old Hollywood director Delmer Daves and his wife, actress Mary Lawrence. Delmer had passed in the 70s, Mary in the 90s. Its likely someone from the family occupied the house from then until Sydney Sweeney. What’s really interesting, is that the home continued on as a sort of museum of Delmer and Mary. She was married again from 1980-87. But Delmer's life and legacy continued here, love letters he'd written Mary rested on a desk beside an ivy-covered window.

He had a whole back house dedicated to his craft. There were shelves of boxes, identified by his neat calligraphy, on every single topic. I liked Perspective Drafting Geometry.

I’ll let the listing speak for itself…

“Prime buildable lot on cul-de-sac Bel Air street above Sunset Blvd. Approx 1.25 acres of green parklike land with mature trees, and extra large swimming pool with numerous options for access. Existing 2 story Main house and single level guest house are likely tear down candidates. The property is surrounded by estate homes valued from the upper single digits to $20M and higher. Excellent opportunity for full scale new construction.”

This home was as good as gone, until Sydney Sweeney nabbed it.

I believe this was around the time she was filming Anyone But You. She also went to SXSW the same month she purchased this home, to promote her independent crime thriller, Americana. Just imagine the kind of notable home she could grab with her American Eagle money. In 2025 she had scoped out this giant house, also in Bel Air, that hadn’t been on the market in 80 years.

Delmer Daves was a screenwriter, film director and producer. He traversed many genres, but was most known for his Westerns. He directed Broken Arrow, 3:10 to Yuma, The Last Wagon and the Hanging Tree. Delmer's original screenplay, Love Affair, was later remade as An Affair to Remember.

Mary Lawrence was an actress, most known for the television series Casey Jones. After acting, she wrote books on art. I remember there was a large collection of them at the sale, we would give one out with purchase.

The listing never showed the inside of the home because the value of the surrounding homes were so high, who else would buy it other than a developer with dollar signs in his beady little eyes??

Sydney Sweeney, our hero! Haha

I will let you know what becomes of this home because I care and can’t stop thinking about it. What if she waterfall counters it? I’m kidding…

10 crazy estate sales below. I’m talking vintage Dior, Fendi, Mugler, Gaultier et al. Signed Salvador Dali photo in someone’s home gym…and prints from one of my favorite artists! This is the weekend for trekking and lowballing.