LOS ANGELES — A beloved Hollywood landmark is getting a second chance. The Cinerama Dome, a massive curved theater that went dark during the COVID-19 pandemic, is set to be restored and reopened to the public.
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema will take over operations of both the 86-foot-wide geodesic dome theater and a 14-theater complex located right next door. Sony Pictures Entertainment, which owns Alamo Drafthouse, unveiled the plan and confirmed a target reopening date of early 2028.
The restoration will keep the Dome’s iconic geodesic exterior and its large logo intact — features that have defined the Hollywood skyline since the theater first opened in 1963. Unlike most other Alamo Drafthouse locations, the Cinerama Dome will not offer in-theater dining.
Ravi Ahuja, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment, spoke to the theater’s lasting cultural weight: “There is no moviegoing destination anywhere in the world that commands the affection, history, and cultural significance of the Cinerama Dome. It represents the kind of singular experience we value and champion.” Alamo Drafthouse CEO Michael Kustermann added that the Dome will serve as the chain’s flagship theater on the West Coast.
The theater’s enormous screen is built to support 70mm film projection — a format that has seen a surge in popularity, in part due to Christopher Nolan’s film “The Odyssey.”
The Dome was originally built in 1963 at the direction of Pacific Theatres founder William R. Forman, who envisioned a cutting-edge moviegoing experience using three projectors on a specially designed curved screen. When it closed in April 2021, the Cinerama Dome was one of only three theaters worldwide capable of that kind of projection. Pacific Theaters cited the financial toll of the COVID-19 pandemic as the reason for shutting its doors.
The adjacent 14-theater complex, formerly operated by ArcLight Cinemas before it also closed in 2021, will be revived under the Alamo Drafthouse banner as well. Those theaters, unlike the Dome, will feature the chain’s signature in-theater dining experience.
