The news that Arclight cinemas are closing permanently – part of the larger shutdown that includes Pacific Theaters in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic – shocked the movie industry and the greater Los Angeles community.
Filmmaker John August was one of the first tweet about the news: “Oh no. ArcLight Hollywood is my favorite place to see movies. “
Actor Ben Schwartz repeated that feeling. “The Arclight Hollywood was my favorite theater in the world to see movies,” he tweeted. “I saw my first movie there in LA when I moved here in 2009 and the last movie before the pandemic there. Really a bummer.
Writer-director Gina Prince-Bythewood tweeted that the Arclight was her “go-to” and praised the theater’s sound, seating and popcorn.
Writer-producer Liz Hannah called the news was “truly devastating” and underscored the emotional connection she shared with so many about the theater: “I know I am not the only one who feel that the Arclight has shaped so many of my experiences and friendships in Los Angeles. “
And Oscar-winning director Barry Jenkins summed up the bigger sentiment with one word in capital letters: “FUCK.”
The original Arclight location opened in the heart of Hollywood on Sunset Blvd. in 2002, featuring the iconic Cinerama dome in a 15-screen, two-tier multiplex. The theater’s amenities – such as assigned seating, an on-site bar and restaurant, introductions by Arclight employees, and screenings 21 and older with alcohol – became popular with other, larger movie chains. Over the years, Arclight also opened locations in San Diego, Chicago, Boston and Washington DC.
But with a total of six locations in the greater Los Angeles area by the time it closed, it’s hard to overstate how central the Arclight had become to LA movie culture. During the opening weekend, Q & As with the director and stars of a movie were a fixture, especially at the Hollywood location. The Arclight was one of the most popular venues to usher in the platform release of an independent film, and the theater regularly hosted press screenings, FYC events and film premieres.
Above all, the comfortable seats, large screens and premium sound and projection made the Arclight the best location for many to see a highly anticipated movie. The loss of the theater, just as the COVID-19 pandemic seemed to be waning – and movie theaters in LA began to reopen – makes the loss much more painful to bear.
On Twitter, many mourned the Arclight by sharing some of their favorite memories of seeing movies there.
Hannah recalled see JJ Abrams’ “Star Trek” in 2009 and how audiences burst into applause when they first saw the Enterprise, and see revival screenings of “The Silence of the Lambs” and “In the Heat of the Night” introduced by their respective stars, Jodie Foster and Sidney Poitier.
“At some point, when I’m less upset, I’ll tell you a funny story about my first meeting with Quentin Tarantino in the Hollywood Arclight lobby,” tweeted filmmaker Lulu Wang.
TV writer Eric Haywood tweeted on the experience of seeing “Black Panther” on opening night at the Arclight: “Whew, you had to be there.”
Writer and podcaster Jessie Maltin, daughter of esteemed film critic Leonard Maltin, remembered taking her husband to the Arclight when he first moved to the country, and many friends of hers who had worked in the theater to embrace their love of movies.
Maltin also expressed a common sentiment among fans of the Arclight: “I have to believe someone will find a way to save the Hollywood venue and, more importantly, The Cinerama Dome,” she says. tweeted“It must be a milestone.”
Indeed, with the theaters of Arclight and Pacific taking up so much Southern California movie real estate – Pacific had multiplexes in the Grove and the Americana, two hugely popular LA area malls – it’s hard to grasp how damaging a hit the will be closure for an already weakened theatrical affairs. Some have already begun to speculate whether at least some of the Arclight sites can be rescued, either through acquisition by a streaming company like Netflix, Amazon or Apple, or through some kind of consortium of studios (legally possible now with the recent end of the Paramount Consent Decrees banning these kinds of agreements).
The dust hasn’t settled on the news yet, and any final judgment on the Arclight’s ultimate fate will be settled in the coming days and weeks. What is now undeniably clear at least is that the Arclight was as close to the beating heart of the movie industry as any company could hope for, and its departure is excruciating for just about every facet of the industry.
Jasmine Tangcay and Angelique Jackson contributed to this story.