Los Angeles‘ favorite movie theater will have its doors closed a while longer. ArcLight Hollywood, the 15-screen cineplex that includes the iconic Cinerama Dome, has pushed its reopening away from 2024 and into 2025, Deadline first reported.
However, a source with direct knowledge of the Cinerama Dome/Arclight situation tells IndieWire that, as has been known in industry circles for some time, no specific window for the reopening is set, but the hope is that it will occur in 2025.
Final redesign, including the total number of screens (previously 14 plus the Dome) is still being worked on. The redesign will not include any notable changes to the Dome.
When reopened, the theater will face a significantly changed landscape, particularly in the specialized area. Los Angeles is no longer a two-theater platform city, but usually at least three. Among these are the nearby Grove, previously operated by Arclight’s one time owner Pacific Theaters. It is now owned by AMC, which also runs the Westside Century City and the Burbank, often two other theaters playing limited runs, and with decent results.
The Arclight Hollywood will have the advantage, apart from whatever elements set it apart from the other theaters, of likely being able to give more screens and seats to limited titles (the Grove and Century City in particular have great demand for many films, including top studio wide releases), as well as its previous reputation as a stand-out venue to see movies.
Possibly the most famous movie theater in Los Angeles, the Cinerama Dome opened in 1963 on 6360 Sunset Boulevard, taking its name from the widescreen film format it was originally designed to support. Developed by William R. Forman, founder of the Pacific Theatres company, the theater operated for over 50 years, folding into the larger ArcLight Hollywood complex in 2002, until it shut down operations in March 2020. Originally intended as a temporary pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it became permanent when Pacific Theatres Exhibition and the overall ArcLight chain filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in April 2021. Several of the ArcLight and Pacific Theatres locations have since been purchased by various other companies, including the Culver City location (Amazon), Sherman Oaks and Pasadena (Regal), and the Grove theater and locations in La Jolla and D.C. (AMC).
ArcLight Hollywood is still owned by Pacific’s former parent company Decurion, which is still owned by the Forman Family. At the time of the bankruptcy filing, the company released a statement saying: “This was not the outcome anyone wanted, but despite a huge effort that exhausted all potential options, the company does not have a viable way forward. To our guests and members of the film industry who have made going to the movies such a magical experience over the years: our deepest thanks. It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve you.”
However, in June 2022, Decurion was reported to have plans to reopen ArcLight and the Cinerama Dome, now under the name Cinerama Hollywood, with two new bars and a restaurant added to the location. Originally, it was intended to open in 2023, but its opening was pushed back to the second half of 2024, before now being expected in 2025.
Since the pandemic in 2020, several specialty theaters in the Los Angeles area have faced closures, including the Landmark on Pico Boulevard in May 2022. However, others have begun the process of reopening, including the iconic Egyptian Theater, which finally reopened in November under the ownership of Netflix after three years of renovation.
