Another popular movie theater chain files Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Movie theaters have faced fierce competition from various media since the 1980s, and it only got worse after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Increased sales of video cassette recorders in the 1980s and 90s, movie production companies' expansion of selling movies on VHS tapes, and the growth of video rental store chains, led to more people watching movies at home and a reduction in movie theater attendance.

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As the 1990s began, the movie industry was generating more revenue from the sale of VHS movie tapes than movie tickets, Movieweb reported.

The new millennium brought streaming into households as Netflix launched in 2007. The rise in streaming services led to a decline in movie theater audiences as global theater attendance declined by 4% in 2021, the Motion Picture Institute reported.

The industry had been enjoying record revenues before the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, as it reached nearly $12 billion in 2018, before plummeting to $8.5 billion in 2024.

Much of that decline was fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic. Many movie theaters that shut down completely during the pandemic, never returned to pre-Covid attendance levels as many people were still reluctant to take a chance on catching a disease in a theater, or they had broken the habit of going to the movies.

The rising cost of movie tickets has forced many people to be more selective in choosing which films they see. While the quality of viewing a motion picture in a movie theater can seldom be matched for the total experience, many people believe streaming a film on their home entertainment system is adequate for them.

Post-Covid movie theater economics have forced movie theater companies into financial distress, requiring some companies to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Movie theater chains file for bankruptcy

The second-largest movie theater chain behind AMC, Cineworld, closed 50 Regal theaters and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2022. It exited bankruptcy in July 2023.

CMX Cinemas, which has 28 locations, 311 screens, and over 2,000 employees, filed for Chapter 11 protection for the second time in five years on June 30 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida to reorganize.

The debtor listed $50 million to $100 million in assets and $1 million to $10 million in liabilities in its petition. The company's biggest asset are its real estate, and it is evaluating its real estate portfolio, according to Bloomberg.

Cinemaworld of Florida files for bankruptcy protection.

Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty

Cinemaworld files its Chapter 11 petition to reorganize

And now, movie theater chain Cinemaworld of Florida, which operates Majestic and CW-branded theaters in three states, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida on July 3, seeking to reorganize its business.

Cinemaworld listed $10 million to $50 million in assets and liabilities. The debtor's petition indicated that funds would be available for distribution to unsecured creditors after administrative expenses.

More bankruptcy:

The Vero Beach, Fla.-based movie theater company operates The Majestic 11 theater and CW Lanes & Games Bowling Center in Vero Beach.

The debtor also operates the 15-screen CW Theaters in West Melbourne, Fla., which include stadium seating, DLP digital sight and sound.

CW Theaters is one of the lowest-priced first-run movie theaters guests are going to find, priced at $7 for adults on all days, all shows; and $5 for military, veterans, hospital staff, first responders, seniors 55 or older, and kids 12 and under.

Super Tuesday tickets for all standard tickets, all day on Tuesdays, are only $4.

Cinemaworld also operates the Majestic 7 theater in Watertown, Mass., and CW Lincoln Mall 16 in Lincoln, R.I.