Sony and Alamo Drafthouse, the luxury movie theater chain that the studio acquired in 2024, are in talks with the ownership of Los Angeles’ iconic Cinerama Dome theater and the adjacent ArcLight Hollywood complex about reopening indoor venues, sources say. Hollywood Reporter.
Movie theaters closed at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. Their operator, Pacific Theaters, later declared bankruptcy. The properties are still owned by the family of Pacific’s founder, William R. Foreman, who built the dome in 1963. It is now a Los Angeles historical and cultural monument.
Delivery timewho broke the news, noted that the family held meetings with showrunners and studios while searching for a new operator. AMC and Amazon MGM have reportedly passed.
Sony did not respond to a request for comment THR.
The zombie state of places has become a topic of curiosity and opposition in recent years. Petitions were circulated and protests were held over the issue, which came to be seen as a symbol of the continuing economic problems of both the film industry as well as Los Angeles. All the while, the family refused to discuss the matter publicly.
The Cinerama Dome is famous for its stunning architecture inspired by the ideas of R. Buckminster Fuller. It has long been a popular industry choice for studio premieres and the outdoor lighting was shorthand for the urban romance of a Quentin Tarantino film. Once upon a time in Hollywood.
ArcLight helped pioneer premium modern multiplex features, including stadium-style reclining chairs, in-house gourmet dining and reserved seating. Alamo Drafthouse, another hospitality-based exhibitor, has recently come under fire for allowing concessions to be ordered via mobile phone, a pivot away from the previous strict ban on phone use during shows.
Since the closing of the Cinerama Dome and ArcLight Hollywood, Los Angeles has seen a renaissance of the venue. This includes the arrival of the David Geffen Theater into the new AMPAS Museum, the Tarantino restoration and reopening of the Vista Theater, the rehabilitation of the old Eagle Theater by the non-profit company Vidiots, the glow of the Egyptian Theater with funding from Netflix, and the modernization of the Alex Theater so it can handle first-run films such as Odyssey.
