As Cineplex considers a potential sale, audiences appear to be rediscovering movie theatre magic
Financial reports show company saw year-over-year increase in attendance in first half of the year
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company → consider → year
As Cineplex indicates a sale might be in its future, experts and the company's own financial reports suggest movie theatres are seeing a resurgence in popularity in Canada, thanks in part to younger generations of cinephiles.
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theatres → indicate → cinephiles
A memo released this week announcing Bill Walker as the company's new CEO said Cineplex has initiated a strategic review to look at opportunities "to enhance and maximize value for all shareholders" that could include selling the company.
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that → release → company
"While we remain highly confident in the company’s future prospects, we are committed to evaluating all available opportunities and remain open-minded regarding potential outcomes
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we → remain → outcomes
," said Phyllis Yaffe, head of Cineplex's board, in the memo.
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Yaffe → say → memo
The news comes after Cineplex reported box office revenues of close to $98 million in August, its highest monthly box office performance in the company's history, driven by the release of summer blockbusters The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
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Cineplex → come → blockbusters
The company also reported it saw a 12.7 per cent increase in theatre attendance in the first half of 2026 compared to the same time period last year, with a 12.3 per cent increase in revenues.
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it → report → revenues
Cineplex may be going up for sale, company says in announcement of new CEO
Cineplex is launching 'surprise' movie premieres, but will it help bring audiences back to theatres?
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it → go → theatres
Still, movie theatre attendance hasn't fully returned to pre-pandemic levels, with a recent Telefilm Canada study finding ticket consumption per capita in 2024 was about half of what it was in 2019.
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it → return → 2019
However, the report also noted that 2019 was a year that saw the release of several blockbuster films, and that 2024 ticket consumption was only four per cent lower than 2014.
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consumption → note → 2014
While moviegoing may not be what it once was, it's still an important part of popular culture, said Paul Moore, a professor at Toronto Metropolitan University who studies the history of moviegoing and movie theatres.
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who → say → moviegoing
"I don't think a change in ownership is going to change the place that Cineplex has in the retail landscape or in our cultural landscape," he said.
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he → think → landscape
"There's no hint that megaplexes are losing so much money that somebody actually wants to shut them down and rework their real estate."
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somebody → be → estate
Young people filling seats
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people → fill → seats
The same Telefilm report also suggests that young people aren't replacing going to the cinema with streaming, at least not entirely.
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people → suggest → streaming
The report found that 85 per cent of respondents under 35 said they were moviegoers, compared to 54 per cent of those 35 and up.
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they → find → those
That's been the case throughout most of history, Moore said, since movies have always catered to young people.
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movies → say → people
"So it's good to see that continuity with the past," he said.
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he → see → past
Young people grew up in the digital age.
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people → grow → age
So why do they love movies on film?
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they → love → film
YouTube already had a place in Hollywood.
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YouTube → have → Hollywood
The success of Backrooms and Obsession proves it's undeniable
Independent cinemas are also seeing a bump in attendance year-over-year, said Sonya Yokota William, the director of the Network of Independent Canadian Exhibitors.
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William → prove → Exhibitors
William attributes the bump in part to younger, Gen-Z audiences that are "more curious and more adventurous and happy to go out and see something that maybe they wouldn't have before.
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they → attribute → that
But with Cineplex taking in close to 74 per cent of all box-office revenue in Canada, William said she worries that any changes in ownership could "really hurt cinema going in this country."
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changes → take → country
However, Moore pointed out that the majority of Canada's cinemas were under foreign ownership for most of their history, back when Famous Players — a subsidiary of U.S-based Paramount — dominated the country's movie theatre industry.
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Players → point → industry
Moore said he doesn't think much has changed since Famous Players was bought by Cineplex in 2005 in terms of what's offered to moviegoers.
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what → say → moviegoers
He also pointed out that Landmark Cinemas, its nearest competitor in Canada, is owned by a Belgium company that offers similar content.
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that → point → content
"In general, the fact that Cineplex is owned by a Canadian company is really making very little difference to the kinds of movies that it's showing and its role in the Canadian film industry."
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it → own → industry
The magic of going to the theatre isn’t about the movie.
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magic → go → movie
It’s about watching it with strangers
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It → ’ → strangers
Toronto cinema says it was forced to cancel screenings over decades-old, unofficial 'zone' system
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it → say → system
In any event, the sale of Cineplex to new owners seems to be only a possibility at this point.
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sale → seem → point
In its memo, the company said "no decisions have been made."
"There can be no assurance that the Strategic Review will result in any transaction, agreement or other strategic outcome," the memo read.
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memo → say → transaction
The chain was last up for sale in 2019, when the company agreed to a $2.8-billion buyout by U.K.-based Cineworld Group PLC.
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company → agree → U.K.-based
But the deal fell through duing the COVID-19 pandemic when theatres were forced to abruptly shut down.
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theatres → fall → pandemic
The Aporia
