Cineplex Entertainment facts for kids
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Formerly
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| Predecessors |
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| Founded | October 4, 1999 (Galaxy Entertainment) November 26, 2003 (Cineplex-Galaxy) |
| Founder | Gerry Schwartz, Ellis Jacob and Stephen Brown |
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Number of locations
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Area served
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Canada |
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| Revenue |  CA$656.66 million (2021) |
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Operating income
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 –CA$84.29 million (2021) |
| –CA$248.72 million (2021) |
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| Total assets | CA$2.11 billion (2021) |
| Total equity | –CA$219.72 million (2021) |
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Number of employees
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Over 13,000 (2019) |
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Cineplex Inc. is a Canadian company that runs movie theaters and fun family entertainment centers. Its main office is in Toronto. It is the biggest movie theater chain in Canada. In 2019, it had 165 locations and earned 75% of all movie ticket sales in the country.
The company started in 2003. This happened when a company called Galaxy Entertainment merged with the Canadian parts of Loews Cineplex. Galaxy Entertainment was a chain of cinemas that began in 1999. It mostly operated in smaller towns. Cineplex later bought Famous Players in 2005 and became a public company in 2011. In 2013, it bought some of Empire Theatres' locations. In 2019, another company, Cineworld Group, tried to buy Cineplex for a lot of money. However, Cineworld stopped the deal in June 2020.
Cineplex runs movie theaters all over Canada. Most of them are called Cineplex Cinemas. Some big locations are called Scotiabank Theatre. The company also uses names from older chains it bought, like Famous Players and SilverCity. Besides movies, Cineplex also owns fun places like The Rec Room and Playdium. It also has a rewards program called Scene+ and a digital movie store called Cineplex Store.
History of Cineplex
How Cineplex Began
Cineplex's story goes back to the early days of movies in Canada. One of its oldest connections is to the Famous Players Film Company, which started in 1912. This company began operating in Canada in 1920.
Another important company was Odeon Theatres of Canada, which started in 1941. It later joined with Canadian Theatres in 1978.
In 1979, Garth Drabinsky and Nat Taylor created the Cineplex Corporation. They opened their first "Cineplex" movie complex in Toronto. In 1984, Odeon joined with Cineplex to form Cineplex Odeon Corporation. This company was later bought by Loews Theatres in 1998.
Early Years of Galaxy Entertainment
Galaxy Entertainment Inc. started in 1999. It was founded by Ellis Jacob and Stephen Brown, who used to work for Cineplex Odeon. Galaxy Entertainment focused on smaller towns that often had older movie theaters. They opened new, modern cinemas called Galaxy Cinemas. By 2003, Galaxy Entertainment had 19 theaters.
In November 2003, the Canadian parts of Loews Cineplex Entertainment merged with Galaxy Entertainment. The new company was called Cineplex Galaxy Income Fund.
Growing Bigger: Buying Famous Players
On June 13, 2005, Cineplex Galaxy announced it would buy Famous Players for CA$500 million. This deal was completed on July 22, 2005. To make sure there was fair competition, Cineplex sold 27 of its locations to Empire Theatres.
In October 2005, Cineplex Galaxy changed its name to Cineplex Entertainment. This showed that the company had grown much larger. Over the next few years, Cineplex bought more theaters. It also started to get into advertising and special events. The company also launched a new type of entertainment venue called The Rec Room.
New Experiences: VIP Cinemas and More
In the 2010s, Cineplex started offering "VIP Cinemas." These special theaters have comfy reclining seats and you can order food and drinks right to your seat. They also have a special lounge. In 2014, Cineplex opened its first VIP Cinemas location that was only for VIP movies.
In 2013, Cineplex bought 24 movie theaters from Empire Theatres in Atlantic Canada and Ontario. This helped Cineplex grow even more across the country.
Attempted Sale to Cineworld
On December 16, 2019, Cineplex announced that a British company called Cineworld Group wanted to buy it. Cineworld is one of the biggest movie theater companies in the world. The deal was worth about CDN$2.8 billion. If the sale had gone through, Cineworld would have become the largest movie theater chain in North America.
Cineplex shareholders approved the sale in February 2020. However, the COVID-19 pandemic caused all Cineplex theaters to close temporarily starting in March 2020. In June 2020, Cineworld decided not to buy Cineplex. Cineworld said Cineplex had broken some rules of the sale agreement. Cineplex disagreed and said Cineworld was wrong.
The agreement said that Cineworld would have to pay a penalty if it canceled the deal. In December 2021, a court in Ontario ruled that Cineworld had to pay Cineplex US$1 billion for breaking the contract. Cineworld planned to appeal this decision.
In April 2025, Cineplex Inc. sold its Cineplex Store division to a Swiss company called CosmoBlue Media.
What Cineplex Offers
Movie Theater Brands
Cineplex Entertainment runs 158 theaters as of late 2024. These theaters use several different names:
- Cineplex Cinemas and Cineplex Odeon (94 locations combined)
- Cineplex Junxion (2 locations)
- Cineplex VIP Cinemas (4 standalone locations)
- Famous Players (3 locations)
- Galaxy Cinemas (30 locations)
- Scotiabank Theatre (10 locations)
- SilverCity and StarCité (14 locations combined)
Cineplex Cinemas is the company's main brand. Many locations still use the older Cineplex Odeon name. The Scotiabank Theatre brand works with Scotiabank and is used for premium theater locations. Galaxy Theatres are mostly in smaller and medium-sized towns.
The Cinema City brand is used at one location in Winnipeg that mostly shows older movies. Other theaters, like The Beach Cinemas, were bought from other companies and rebranded. Some older names like Famous Players and SilverCity are still used at a few locations.
Special Movie Experiences
Some Cineplex locations offer special movie experiences for a higher ticket price. These include very large screens, seats that move, and VIP sections. In 2015, Cineplex found that many customers chose these special formats.
- Prime Seats are special reserved rows in the best viewing spots.
- IMAX screens are available at 30 locations. These screens are very large, from about 73 to 119 feet wide. Scotiabank Theatre Toronto is the only Cineplex location with special IMAX with Laser projectors.
- ScreenX offers a huge 270-degree screen that wraps around you. It is available at 15 locations.
- UltraAVX is Cineplex's own large screen format. These auditoriums have "wall-to-wall" screens, super clear 4K projectors, and amazing Dolby Atmos sound. Many UltraAVX rooms also have ScreenX or D-Box seats.
- D-Box seats move and vibrate along with the movie.
- VIP Cinemas are for adults. They have a special lounge with a bar. The cinemas have comfy reclining seats and you can order food and drinks to your seat.
- 4DX is a special format that adds effects like wind, smells, and seat motion to the movie. It first launched at Cineplex Cinemas Yonge-Dundas in November 2016.
- Clubhouse is a fun movie room designed for kids. It has colorful seats and a play area.
Arcades and Fun Centers
Arcades at Cineplex locations are mostly called Xscape Entertainment Centre. These arcades have many games, including ones where you can win tickets for prizes. In 2017, Cineplex started opening Xscape arcades in other countries, like at the Mall of America in the United States.
In January 2015, Cineplex announced The Rec Room. These are big entertainment centers with restaurants, bars, arcades, and games. They also have a stage for live shows. The first Rec Room opened in Edmonton in September 2016. There are now 10 Rec Room locations across Canada.
Cineplex also owns Playdium, which is an arcade and family entertainment centre for kids and teens. The first Playdium opened in 1996. In 2019, Cineplex relaunched Playdium with new locations. There are now three Playdium locations in Canada. Cineplex hopes to open more Playdium locations in the future.
In 2022, Cineplex launched Cineplex Junxion. This is a new type of cinema that combines movies with fun elements from The Rec Room. The first Cineplex Junxion opened in Winnipeg in December 2022.
Virtual Reality Experiences
Cineplex has also explored virtual reality (VR) experiences. In 2018, Cineplex announced it would be the only company in Canada to offer The Void attractions. These are mixed reality experiences where you can walk around in virtual worlds. Cineplex also planned to add VR centers using VRStudios equipment.
Scene+ Rewards Program
Scene+ is a rewards program that started in 2007. It is owned by both Scotiabank and Cineplex Entertainment. You can earn points when you go to the movies or use your Scotiabank card. You can then use these points for free movies or other rewards.
Food and Drinks at Cineplex
Many Cineplex theaters have an Outtakes restaurant where you can buy food. VIP Cinemas and some Xscape locations have a special lounge with more fancy food and drinks.
Poptopia is a place where you can get different flavored popcorn. Some theaters have a full Poptopia store, while others just offer caramel or kettle corn at the regular snack bar.
For ice cream, Cineplex theaters offer Yogen Früz and TCBY. For drinks, they have Coca-Cola products. Some locations even have Coca-Cola Freestyle machines where you can mix your own drinks. For hot drinks, many theaters have Starbucks coffee and Tazo tea.
In most theaters, adults aged 19 and older (or 18 and older in Alberta) can buy beer or cider.
Who Runs Cineplex
The current Chief Executive Officer and President of Cineplex Entertainment is Ellis Jacob. He works with a team of other leaders to manage the company.
