Mark Cuban’s Landmark Theatres Chain Is on the Block
Landmark Theaters, the indie cinema chain owed by billionaire businessman Mark Cuban, is up for sale, TheWrap has learned.
Cuban and business partner Todd Wagner have enlisted an unnamed bank to explore a potential sale of the art-house exhibitor, according to Deadline, which first reported the news.
“We had interest from buyers, so we hired a bank to evaluate offers,” Cuban told the Hollywood Reporter. We are in no rush to sell, but we are happy to evaluate offers.”
Reps for Landmark did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
Also Read: Mark Cuban's Landmark Theatres Accused of Distributor 'Exploitation' in Antitrust Lawsuit
Landmark oversees 245 screens in 21 cities, including Los Angeles and New York City. The exhibitor falls under Wagner and Cuban’s 2929 Entertainment umbrella, which includes Magnolia Pictures, HDNet Movies and a handful of other media properties.
Wagner/Cuban, which bought the indie exhibitor form Oaktree Capital Management in 2003, explored a sale of Landmark and Magnolia back in 2013 –but the talks went nowhere.
The new exploaration of a sale comes at a time of transition for exhibitors. Just last week, Landmark signed a deal with the all-you-can-watch subscription service MoviePass to drive more moviegoers to the theaters.
Also Read: MoviePass Signs Exhibition Deal With Mark Cuban's Landmark Theatres
In a new survey from the MPAA, attendance among frequent moviegoers in a key 18-to-24 years old demographic was down 28 percent last year, compared with 2016. Attendance among teens who frequent the cineplex was down 22 percent.
Overall, box office revenue from 2017 was down nearly 3 percent, compared with 2016 — even as the average ticket price rose 4 percent to $8.97.
There’s been a recent trend of consolidation in the industry though. In December, U.K.-based Cineworld bought Regal Entertainment for $3.6 billion, and in 2016 AMC Entertainment bought Carmike Cinemas for a little more than $1 billion.
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