The news that the Arclight Cinemas is closing permanently – part of the larger closure that includes Pacific Theaters in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic – has hit the film industry and the larger Los Angeles community like a shock wave.
The filmmaker John August was one of the first to tweet on the news: “Oh no. ArcLight Hollywood is my favorite place to watch movies. ”
Actor Ben Schwartz echo that feeling. “The Arclight Hollywood was my favorite theater in the world to see movies,” he tweeted. ‘I saw my first movie in LA there when I moved here in 2009, and the last movie before the pandemic there. Truly a bummer.
Writer-Director Gina Prince-Bythewood tweeted that the Arclight was her ‘go-to’ and praised the theater’s sound, seat and popcorn.
Author-producer Liz Hannah called the news ‘truly devastating’ and underscores the emotional connection she shared with so many people across the theater: ‘I know I do not feel alone that the Arclight shaped so much of my experience and friendships in Los Angeles.’
And Oscar-winning director Barry Jenkins summed up the greater sentiment with one word in all capital letters: “FOK.”
The original Arclight location was located in the heart of Hollywood on Sunset Blvd. in 2002. opened and incorporated the iconic Cinerama dome into a 15-screen, two-level multiplex. The theater’s amenities – such as dedicated seating, a bar and restaurant, introductions by Arclight employees and 21-and-more shows featuring alcohol – have become popular with other major film chains. Over the years, Arclight has also opened locations in San Diego, Chicago, Boston and the Washington DC area.
But with six total locations in the greater Los Angeles area by the time it closes, it’s hard to judge how central the Arclight has become in LA film culture. On the opening weekend, Q & As with a director and stars of a movie was regular, especially in the Hollywood location. The Arclight was one of the most popular venues to open the release of an independent film, and the theater regularly hosted press screenings, FYC events and premieres in advance.
The comfortable seating, large screens and premium sound and projection made the Arclight the best place for many people to watch a long-awaited movie. The loss of the theater, just as it appears that the COVID-19 pandemic is diminishing – and the movie theaters in LA are starting to reopen – makes the loss so much more painful to bear.
On Twitter, many mourned the Arclight by sharing some of their favorite memories when they saw movies there.
Remember Hannah see JJ Abrams’ “Star Trek” in 2009 and how the audience burst into applause when they first saw the Enterprise, and see revival performances of “The Silence of the Lambs” and “In the Heat of the Night” launched by their respective stars, Jodie Foster and Sidney Poitier.
“If I’m less upset, I’m telling you a funny story about my first encounter with Quentin Tarantino in the Hollywood Arclight lobby.” tweeted filmmaker Lulu Wang.
TV Writer Eric Haywood tweeted about the experience of seeing ‘Black Panther’ during the opening night at the Arclight: ‘Whew you had to be there.’
The author and podcast, Jessie Maltin, daughter of acclaimed film critic Leonard Maltin, remember her husband to the Arclight when he first moved to the country, and many friends of hers who worked in the theater to accept their love of movies.
Maltin also expressed a general sentiment among Arclight fans: “I have to believe that someone will find a way to save the Hollywood place and, more importantly, The Cinerama Dome,” she says. tweeted. “It must be a beacon.”
With Arclight and Pacific theaters occupying so much real estate in Southern California – Pacific managed multiplexes in the Grove and the Americana, two popular shopping malls in the LA area, it’s hard to determine how damaging a hit the closure for an already weakened theater business. Some have already begun speculating whether at least some of the Arclight locations could be saved acquisition by a streaming company like Netflix, Amazon or Apple, or by some sort of consortium of studios (now legally possible with the recent end of the Paramount Consent Decrets banning this kind of arrangement).
The dust has not yet settled on the news, and any definite verdict on the ultimate fate of the Arclight will be decided in the days and weeks to come. What is now unmistakably clear is for now at least that the Arclight was as close to the beating heart of the film industry as any company could hope to be, and its departure is dire for some aspects of the industry.
Jasmine Tangcay and Angelique Jackson contributed to this story.