Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, the Texas-based dine-in chain renowned for its vibrant fan-oriented culture and ban on talking and texting during screenings, is reportedly exploring a sale.
Founded by Tim League as a single-screen venue in 1997, the company sold its assets to Altamont Capital Partners, Fortress Investment Group, League and other investors in 2021 and came through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy during the pandemic when it and other operators were forced to shut their doors.
According to reports the exhibitor chain, which runs around 40 sites in the US, has approached a number of Hollywood studios as potential buyers.
Screen had not confirmed the talks with studio sources at time of writing and Alamo Drafthouse had no comment.
The fate of exhibition will be a major topic of conversation at the upcoming CinemaCon in Las Vegas running April 8-11. The sector has faced several brutal years brought on first by the pandemic and followed by the ongoing fallout from last year’s Hollywood strikes.
This year’s pipeline is diminished after the industrial action disrupted production schedules and studios pushed some releases into 2025. Box office currently trails 2023 at the same stage by 10.7%.
Box office in 2023 reached $9.048bn according to Comscore, with distribution sources estimating this year will finish on or around $8bn. The prevailing sentiment in theatrical distribution circles is box office is expected to pick up next year.
Michael Kustermann was promoted to Alamo CEO last summer and said at the time, ”I am confident that as this industry continues to build back, we will keep leading the way, just as we have proven we can with over 18 months of solid double digit growth vs the industry’s recovery,” Movies exist to make an impact in our lives and theatres deliver that – period.”
Deadline first reported the Alamo Drafthouse development.
No comments yet