Five North Texas Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas closed, but may reopen

Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas says they'll try to reopen five shuttered North Texas theaters closed Thursday when the franchisee filed for bankruptcy, putting about 600 people out of work.

A statement from Two is One, One is None, LLC said they were closing six theaters, including one in Minnesota and five locations in Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton because the businesses have been unable to rebound to pre-COVID levels, recover from a writer's and actor's strike and overcome generally sluggish revenues in the industry.

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The franchisee said they were also contractually obligated to keep unprofitable locations open while paying franchise fees of roughly $3.7 million in 2023 and that keeping the doors open was "not sustainable."

"We are deeply saddened to find it necessary to take this step. We are grateful to all our employees who put in the work, day in and day out to produce a special movie-going experience and to our many loyal customers for whom it was a pleasure to provide such a special experience," the franchisee said in a statement. "We wish all employees well and much future success in their new endeavors. References will gladly be provided."

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In a statement provided to NBC 5, the parent company of Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas said they learned of the bankruptcy filing Thursday and that they would try to reopen the closed theaters as soon as possible.

"We are very disappointed to learn today that our franchisee, which operates five locations in Dallas-Fort Worth, TX and one in Woodbury, MN has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and is closing their business effective immediately. We are heartbroken for the franchisee’s teammates and the local film communities, however, we are working as quickly as possible to get Alamo Drafthouse Cinema back up and running in these cities. All other Alamo Drafthouse locations are operating as normal, with continued expansion plans across the country."

There has been no word on when those theaters would reopen and whether any of the employees would be able to be retained.