Cineplex Entertainment

Cineplex stakes a partial claim to the history of the Famous Players Film Company (later Paramount Pictures), founded in 1912, as its earliest predecessor, though that company did not have any operations in Canada until 1920, when it bought Nathan Nathanson's Paramount Theatre chain, which Nathanson had established four years earlier.[8][nb 1] Nathanson, along with being the 5th richest person in the world, became the first president of the resulting entity, Famous Player Canadian Corporation.[9] In 1923, Famous Players bought out rival Allen Theatres, acquiring many buildings in the process.[10]

In 1979, Garth Drabinsky and Nat Taylor opened its first "Cineplex" theatre complex, in the Toronto Eaton Centre.

Galaxy Entertainment Inc. was established in 1999 by Ellis Jacob, a former Chief Operating Officer of Loews Cineplex Entertainment, and Stephen Brown, a former Cineplex Chief Financial Officer. With investments from Onex Corporation and Famous Players, the new company focused on smaller markets that were usually served by smaller theatres and old equipment, opening large, major chain-style locations under the Galaxy Cinemas banner.

In 2001, Loews Cineplex Entertainment (a 1998 merger of Cineplex Odeon and Sony's Loews Theatres in 1998) underwent bankruptcy due to the economic recession of the early 2000s.[11] In 2002, Onex Corporation, along with Oaktree Capital Management, acquired Loews Cineplex Entertainment.

Onex retained Lowes Cineplex's Canadian operations on November 26, 2003 and merged them with Galaxy Entertainment, forming Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund. Jacob became the chief executive of Cineplex Galaxy Cinemas and Brown became the CFO. Most of the theatres acquired by Cineplex were once owned by Cineplex Odeon Corporation.

SilverCity Richmond Hill Cinemas

On June 13, 2005, Cineplex Galaxy announced its acquisition of Famous Players from Viacom for $500 million (about US$397 million). This deal was completed on July 22, 2005. To satisfy antitrust concerns, on August 22, 2005 the group announced the sale of 27 locations in Ontario and western Canada to Empire Theatres.[12]

Eight days after Cineplex Galaxy announced its purchase of Famous Players Theatres, Loews Cineplex Theatres and AMC Theatres announced a merger. While AMC Theatres also operated in Canada and was ranked third behind Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund and the enlarged Empire Theatres, Cineplex Odeon and AMC Theatres remained competitors. In 2012, AMC sold four of its theatres to Cineplex Entertainment, in an effort to divest their Canadian operations and focus on their U.S. assets.[13]

Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund, the owners of the chain, renamed Cineplex Galaxy LP to Cineplex Entertainment on October 3, 2005.[14] In 2011, Cineplex Galaxy became Cineplex Inc.

Cineplex Entertainment announced on March 31, 2006 that it had sold seven more theatres in Quebec to Chelsea-based Fortune Cinemas Inc. On June 29, 2007, Cineplex Entertainment announced its purchase of three Cinema City theatres in western Canada. Two theatres in Winnipeg and one in Edmonton were acquired.[15]

With the bankruptcy of Fortune Cinemas, Cineplex Entertainment acquired (or in this case, re-acquired) some of Fortune Cinemas theatres. The Starcité Gatineau (Starcité Hull) and the Cavendish theaters were reopened as Cineplex Entertainment theatres.

In July 2012, Cineplex Entertainment purchased four of AMC's Canadian theaters, including the Yonge Dundas 24 at 10 Dundas East, adjacent to the Toronto Eaton Centre, and the Forum in Montreal. The purchase of the Yonge Dundas 24, presently Canada's largest multiplex cinema, brought Cineplex Entertainment full circle, as the original Cineplex at Eaton Centre was the namesake for the present company. The company also earlier acquired the Tinseltown Movies 12 theatre from another American chain, Cinemark, in the Gastown neighbourhood of Vancouver.

Over the subsequent years, Cineplex expanded into advertising, events programming and a new concept, The Rec Room, amusement venues with live entertainment that serve food and drink.[16]

The Lansdowne location that Empire Theatres announced in 2011 was acquired by Cineplex in 2014 and opened in 2015.

In the 2010s, Cineplex began to deploy a new concept, "VIP Cinemas", at selected locations, featuring premium amenities such as reclining seats, in-seat meal services, and a licensed lounge. On August 15, 2014, Cineplex opened a dedicated VIP Cinemas Don Mills location, the first to be devoted solely to the format.[17][18] By 2017, the company had also begun to retrofit selected non-VIP auditoriums to feature reclining seating, as part of an effort to improve the customer experience.[19]

On June 27, 2013, the Empire Company announced that it would divest its Empire Theatres operations in order to focus on its real estate assets and grocery chain Sobeys. Cineplex acquired 26 former Empire locations, predominantly in Atlantic Canada (as well as two in Ontario), for around $200 million (Landmark Cinemas acquired the remainder, predominantly in Western Canada and Ontario).[20] In February 2014, Cineplex announced that it had acquired Empire's planned Lansdowne Park location in Ottawa, and would construct a new 10-screen cinema at the site with three VIP screens.[21]

Cineplex in Toronto

Cineplex theatre in Markham

On December 16, 2019, Cineplex announced a definitive agreement to be acquired by the British cinema operator Cineworld Group, the second-largest film exhibitor worldwide,[22] pending shareholder and regulatory approval. Cineworld would be paying $34 per-share—a 42% premium over Cineplex's share price prior to the announcement, valuing the company at CDN$2.8 billion. Cineworld planned to pay US$1.65 billion, and to fund the remainder by taking on debt.[23][22]

Combined with its ownership of the 564-location Regal Cinemas chain in the United States (which it had acquired the previous year), the sale would have made Cineworld the largest cinema chain in North America.[23] Cineworld stated that it planned to integrate Cineplex's operations with those of Regal,[23] while maintaining Cineplex's banners for its Canadian operations.[24] The company also stated that it planned to reach $120 million in cost efficiencies and revenue synergies (including the adoption of a subscription service scheme similar to Regal and Cineworld) by the end of fiscal year 2020.[23]

The sale was approved by Cineplex shareholders in February 2020.[24] Activist shareholder Bluebell Capital Partners called for the Canadian government to block the sale due to the COVID-19 pandemic,[25] which in turn led to the temporary closure of all Cineplex properties for several months starting on March 16.[26] In May, Cineplex stated that Cineworld planned to complete the sale (pending federal approval under the Investment Canada Act) by June 2020, provided that it met the terms of the merger (including its debt not exceeding $725 million).[27]

On June 12, 2020, Cineworld abandoned the purchase, alleging that Cineplex had engaged in conduct that breached unspecified terms of the sale, and that the company had experienced a "material adverse effect" of an unspecified nature. Cineplex denied the claims and made counter-allegations. The agreement with Cineworld included a condition that the latter would pay a penalty in case it decided to cancel the deal.[28] In July, Cineplex started legal action against Cineworld claiming financial damages and Cineworld counter-sued.[29]

Cineplex's flagship banners include Cineplex Cinemas (French: Cinémas Cineplex in Quebec), with some older locations still using the previous "Cineplex Odeon" branding, and Scotiabank Theatre. Selected banners originating from Famous Players are still used by some locations, such as Famous Players and SilverCity (French: StarCité in Quebec), but these banners, as well as others (such as Coliseum and Colossus) have been largely replaced by Cineplex Cinemas (although in the case of Coliseum and Colossus, the unique architectural features of these theatres have been preserved), and Scotiabank Theatre in the case of Famous Players' Paramount cinemas. The Galaxy Theatres brand is primarily used by mid-market locations, although some have been converted to the mainline Cineplex brand.

Selected Cineplex locations offer premium screens and features for a higher ticket price, including large-screen formats, motion seats, and VIP. Following the premiere of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Cineplex reported that at least 80% of customers watched the film with one of its premium formats, and 40% of the company's overall box office revenue came from premium formats.[30]

• Prime Seats are reserved seating rows in selected auditoriums, near the middle of the audience. They were first piloted in Ontario in 2014, before receiving a wider roll-out.[31][32]
• The company currently operates 24 digital IMAX screens. Only one of these, Cineplex Cinemas Markham and VIP, was built by Cineplex rather than acquired from another theatre chain.[33] The screen size is from about 73[34] to 119[35] feet, depending on the venue. As of July 2017, five Cineplex locations offer IMAX 70 mm film playback: both Scotiabank Theatre locations in Alberta, plus the Langley location (former Colossus) in Metro Vancouver, and the Mississauga and Vaughan locations (former Coliseum and Colossus, respectively) in the Greater Toronto Area.[36]
• UltraAVX auditoriums feature a larger "wall-to-wall" screen with 4K projectors, Dolby Atmos surround sound, and reserved seating.[37][38][30]
• D-Box seats are available at selected locations, which offer motion effects synchronized with the film.[39][40] About a dozen locations offer D-Box on UltraAVX screens.
• VIP Cinemas refer to screens featuring a premium, adult-oriented experience. They feature reserved seating, leather reclining seats with tables, a "VIP Lounge" area with a licensed bar, and in-seat meal services offering snacks and other premium menu options. Access to VIP Cinemas are restricted by the legal drinking age; depending on local laws, some locations also allow consumption of alcoholic beverages inside the auditorium (otherwise only allowing it to be consumed in the VIP Lounge). VIP Cinemas are offered at selected flagship locations, and Cineplex has also constructed several locations devoted exclusively to the format.[41][42][43]
• 4DX, a 4D film format, first launched at Cineplex Cinemas Yonge-Dundas on November 4, 2016. It debuted alongside the premiere of Doctor Strange as Canada's first cinema screen to feature the technology. 4DX includes stereoscopic 3D, as well as seat motion and other practical effects such as wind, strobes, and smell among others.[44] A second 4DX screen opened at Scotiabank Theatre Chinook Centre Calgary in August 2019.[45]
• Clubhouse is an auditorium concept designed primarily for children, featuring family films, multi-colored seats and a play structure.[46]

Most Cineplex locations feature arcade areas under various brands. In June 2009, Cineplex began to deploy a new concept known as "Xscape Entertainment Centre", incorporating it into new locations or refurbishing existing locations to utilize the format. There are 28 locations as of September 30, 2017.[47] Xscape feature both redemption games and traditional games, with some locations also including a licensed lounge and party rooms. They utilize card systems to store credits and points for prizes, and provide offers for Scene rewards users.[48] About 77 other Cineplex locations continue to feature a "Cinescape" arcade, replacing the TechTown brand previously deployed by Famous Players and Playdium as well as the Zero Gravity brand launched by Galaxy prior to the 2003 merger with Loews Cineplex Canada.[49] In 2017, Cineplex began to expand the Xscape brand internationally, beginning with two standalone Xscape arcades at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.[50]

In January 2015, Cineplex announced a new entertainment restaurant chain known as The Rec Room. Comparable to the U.S.-based chain Dave & Buster's, The Rec Room features restaurant and bar areas, recreational game areas, simulators, and an auditorium equipped with a cinema-style screen.[51] Cineplex CEO Ellis Jacob explained that the chain is meant to help the company diversify beyond its core cinema business in the wake of the growing streaming industry,[52] The first location opened in South Edmonton Common in 2016. A second location in Toronto's Roundhouse Park opened in June 2017, along with a second Edmonton location at West Edmonton Mall.[53][54] Cineplex aims to open 10-15 locations of The Rec Room nationally, ranging in size from 30,000 to 60,000 square feet.[51][55][56][57] Further locations were announced for Brentwood Town Centre in Burnaby, Masonville Place in London, Square One Shopping Centre in Mississauga,[58] Avalon Mall in St. Johns, Seasons of Tuxedo in Winnipeg,[59][60][61] and Granville Street in Vancouver.[62]

Cineplex owns Playdium, a major arcade and family entertainment centre in Mississauga, Ontario.[63] On October 2, 2017, Cineplex announced that it would re-launch the Playdium brand as a new entertainment restaurant chain oriented towards families; the first new location opened in Brampton, Ontario in 2019 (retrofitting the Cineplex Odeon Orion Gate theatre).[64][65][66]

In November 2019, Cineplex announced that it would introduce a new cinema banner known as Junxion. They are being positioned as a merger of The Rec Room's entertainment restaurant concept with that of a traditional cinema, with its first planned location to open at Erin Mills Town Centre in Mississauga in late 2020, followed by Kildonan Place in Winnipeg afterwards.[67][65]

D-Box VR theatre at Xscape in Scotiabank Theatre Ottawa

In November 2017, an IMAX VR centre opened at Scotiabank Theatre Toronto, as IMAX VR's first location in Canada. The following month, a D-Box VR experience launched at the Ottawa location.[68][69] The IMAX VR centre closed in 2019, as part of the discontinuation of the IMAX VR pilot project.[70]

In July 2018, after having opened such an attraction at The Rec Room at Roundhouse Park, Cineplex Entertainment announced that it had reached an agreement to be the exclusive Canadian franchisee of The Void — a chain of mixed reality entertainment attractions.[71]

On September 13, 2018, Cineplex announced that it would acquire a stake in VRStudios—a Seattle-based provider of virtual reality installations, and utilize its equipment for as many as 40 VR centres across the country.[72]

Launched in 2007, Scene is the entertainment rewards program jointly owned by Scotiabank and Cineplex Entertainment.