A group of exhibitors in the U.S. and Canada will invest more than $2.2 billion over the next three years to upgrade and modernize their theaters amid renewed optimism at the box office after a battering by Covid and Hollywood strikes, said industry trade group NATO.
The chains, representing over 1,600 locations across all 50 states and Canada, include AMC Entertainment, Regal Cinemas, Cinemark USA, Cineplex, Marcus, B&B Theatres, Harkins Theatres and Santikos Entertainment. Together they handle 21,000 screens and 67% of the North American box office.
“This industry has not had a quote ‘normal’ year in five years,” NATO President and CEO Michael O’Leary tell Deadline. What it needs “is just four or five months of normalcy. And I think that is what you are seeing now … So we’ll see in 2025 if we can actually have an entire calendar year without something that is beyond our control impacting our industry.”
NATO (National Association of Theatre Owners) says the funds will be used on various upgrades from the latest laser projection technology and immersive sound systems to new seating, enhanced food and beverage offerings, family entertainment options like arcades and bowling, and investing in core site elements like state-of-the-art air conditioning, lighting, signage and carpeting.
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“The competition for consumers’ hard-earned dollars is fiercer than ever,” said O’Leary in a statement announcing the news. “Exhibitors are dedicated to making every visit to their theatres memorable. This investment reflects that commitment in a tangible way that every moviegoer will see and enjoy.”
He said the $2.2 billion number is the sum of a poll of exhibitors. “We asked them to tell us just what they expect to spend over the next three years.”
There was no breakdown by company.
Theater owners will likely tap operating budgets as well as raise fresh cash. In July, Regal — which emerged from bankruptcy last year and has been revamping locations — said it capital raised $250 million to upgrade its theaters as the box office rebounds. The chain pacted with Christie this summer to install 280 pure RGB (Red, Green, Blue) laser projectors in theaters across the country.
Other chains like Sony-owned Alamo Drafthouse have been expanding and upgrading locations.
“Operating a theatre today is a capital-intensive operation,” said Bob Bagby, NATO executive board chair and CEO of B&B Theatres, in a statement. “This investment of resources is the next step in our industry’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that going to the theatre remains a unique and special experience for generations to come.”
NATO’s announcement comes as the organization is set to kick off its annual Fall Summit at the Beverly Hilton next week, a kind of mini CinemaCon just for its members with studio visits and panels.
The box office is currently living its most auspicious moment since 2019 as the release sked picks up with theatergoing accelerating this summer to a stream of hits from Inside Out 2 and Despicable Me 4, to Deadpool & Wolverine, Twisters, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Bad Boys: Ride Or Die , It Ends With Us, Longlegs and more.
“One of the things I think is important to note is that there are movies in the marketplace that appeal to a wide audience – mid-budget movies, small-budget movies, and you are seeing audiences of all different ages and backgrounds and demographics,” says O’Leary. “I think that is an incredibly important variable in terms of the sustained long-term health of our industry.”