As Seattle waits to see what the future holds for the beloved Cinerama movie theater, an interesting development in Los Angeles lends credence to the theory that Amazon could someday want to own such a venue.
Netflix finalized a deal to buy the historic Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, according to a story in Variety on Friday, which did not cite a price and said the deal had been in the works for more than a year.
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The streaming giant’s acquisition further cements its desire to be a major player in Hollywood’s filmmaking community. And, as Variety reports, the move gives Netflix a way around major theater chains such as AMC and Regal, which had been reluctant to show films from the service because it would not adhere to exclusivity windows that other studios abide by.
The nonprofit American Cinematheque will still curate and screen weekend content at the Egyptian on weekends, but Netflix plans to showcase its own content and use the facility for special events, screenings and premieres during the week, Variety reported.
Grabbing a physical theater is just the type of situation we pictured Amazon being interested in when news broke this week that the Cinerama, owned by the late Paul Allen’s Vulcan Inc., would be closed indefinitely as renovation of the space was halted in the wake of COVID-19.
Amazon has already shown a desire to compete in Hollywood and with Netflix at various film and television awards shows with content it makes from its own studio. Perhaps a move into physical theaters isn’t so far fetched.
