Vox Cinemas to open 600 new screens in Saudi Arabia
DUBAI, April 20, 2018
In a major boost to the Saudi entertainment industry, Majid Al Futtaim, the leading shopping mall developer, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), has announced plans to open 600 new Vox Cinema screens across Saudi Arabia over the next five years at an investment of SR2 billion ($533 million).
The announcement comes after the Vox Cinemas, a unit of Majid Al Futtaim and one of the Mena region’s largest theatre operators, was granted one of the first licences to operate cinemas in Saudi Arabia.
Its brand-new cinema, which will be the first multiplex in Saudi Arabia, will open at Riyadh Park Mall in the coming days, said the Vox Cinemas parent company in a statement.
The Vox Cinemas Riyadh Park experience will include four screens located within the largest Magic Planet Family Entertainment Centre in the region.
Content including animation, family-friendly films and educational movies will be available through a completely unique and world-class portfolio of viewing experiences including the first Imax screen to exhibit movies and Vox Kids, the concept designed especially for young movie fans, said the statement.
The SR2-billion investment is the biggest ever made in Saudi cinema sector, said the retail pioneer in its statement.
It paves the way for Vox Cinemas to start delivering on an ambitious plan to bring its world-class cinema entertainment portfolio to Saudi Arabia and support the growth of audio-visual and creative talent across the kingdom, it stated.
The Majid Al Futtaim announcement comes a day after Saudi film fans gathered for the first public showing of a movie for 35 years.
As an active supporter of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, Majid Al Futtaim has already announced project investments valued at SR14 billion across its mall asset, fashion, leisure and retail offerings in Saudi Arabia, said a top official.
"This commitment is expected to create more than 114,000 direct and indirect job opportunities," remarked Majid Al Futtaim CEO Alain Bejjani.
"Vox Cinemas will join a growing stable of Majid Al Futtaim’s leading retail, leisure and entertainment brands operating across the Kingdom," he noted.
These new cinema developments will create some 3,000 direct jobs, providing a boost to the diversification agenda for the Saudi economy, he added.
Through its partnership with 20th Century Fox, the distribution arm of Majid Al Futtaim Cinemas will also be exclusively distributing Fox content to all cinemas across Saudi Arabia.
In 2018, the company is planning to release anticipated hits including The Darkest Minds, The Predator and the James Cameron produced Alita Battle Angel.
