Regal, the second-largest cinema chain in North America and a division of parent company Cineworld, has entered into a long-term lease agreement that will see the company continue their operation of their Manhattan Union Square location.
The Union Square cinema was one of 39 Regal locations cited in court papers filed January 2023 as part of Cineworld’s financial restructuring following their Chapter 11 filing in September of last year.
Though the January 2023 filing was widely (and inaccurately) reported by media outlets to indicate that those 39 theaters’ leases were to be rejected and the theaters were to close, that was not in fact the case. Though the filing did pertain to lease negotiations surrounding the 39 theaters, it did not state anything definitive about the ongoing status of those leases and whether the cinemas would remain open.
The 14-screen Union Square location did, in fact, stay open, and Regal’s long-term lease agreement with Related means it will continue to be so.
The Union Square theater is a standout among Regal’s fleet of cinemas in New York; it has been given a recent and extensive redesign to bring its aesthetic in line with that of Cineworld theaters in the U.K. It also boasts the only ScreenX panoramic auditorium in New York City. It is also one of four Regal locations in New York City to offer customers 4DX immersive seating; one of the others, the E-Walk theater in Times Square, was the subject of a lease agreement, announced in May 2023, that would see the cinema remain open under Regal’s leadership.
Said Mooky Greidinger, CEO of Cineworld: “Regal Union Square is a state-of-the-art theatre featuring the latest advancements to the moviegoing experience. In cooperation with our partners at Related, we are excited to enter into a long-term lease agreement for this premiere entertainment destination providing moviegoers from the area the best place to watch a movie for many years to come.”
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