As you walk across the sidewalk after a long day at work, you spot a vibrant red sign with bold letters in the corner of your eye. At that moment, you stop to read the sign that reads Regal Cinemas. You realize you have passed this theater countless times—it’s part of the second-largest movie theater chain in the U.S. (after AMC Theatres). Yet, you glance around the parking lot to see it half-empty. Then you recall an unfortunate reminder about the devastating loss of customers the chain suffered due to the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Standing there in the dark, you wonder if Regal Cinemas ever recovered after the pandemic ended. Did locals and families in the area ever come back, where chatter and the bustling noise of laughter once filled the theater?

There was a time when Regal Cinemas used to be popular not only among locals but anyone who was a movie lover. However, once COVID-19 began to spread rapidly globally, a quarantine was set in place to prevent further exposure to the disease. With everyone apprehensive about the number of people in a closed space, their precautions to ensure their safety resulted in fewer people coming to the movies as months passed. Even locals stopped arriving regularly, and the exciting chatter that used to echo throughout the large theater became a silent void. This issue led Regal Cinema’s main source of profit, the customers, to decline. The insufficient funds to support itself resulted in growing debt. Over time, in 2022, the parent company of Regal Cinemas, Cineworld, underwent a devastating Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Chapter 11, often called ‘reorganization bankruptcy,’ allows businesses to remain operational while establishing a court-approved plan to restructure their liabilities. This includes renegotiating debts and extending payment deadlines. Unlike Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which requires selling all assets for cash to pay back creditors, Chapter 11 provides Cineworld with an opportunity to grow on its own over the long term.

Nevertheless, in 2023, the company still decided to close 51 Regal locations around the U.S. in a drastic measure to avoid falling deeper into accumulated debt. As a result, several people weren’t satisfied with such appalling news since they would need to come to terms with the fact that their local movie theater will soon be permanently closed. Luckily, however, for people living in the Renton area, Regal The Landing is still standing. This is primarily due to its debt rating improving from a B- to a B, which enabled Cineworld to access new funding more easily. Despite those pros, the new mini “movie theatre” has emerged from streaming sites that are now accessible from phones, computers, and televisions. The current society now lives in a world where subscriptions keep the majority from leaving their homes. Many are especially burdened by the choice to go out, considering the inflation rates of paying for movie tickets and snacks. There is also the inconvenience of traveling to the movie theaters, or even the lack of public transport or access to a car. It would only make sense for anyone to wonder why they would head toward the theaters, when there is a quicker and better option provided.

While that is the reality, AMC Theatres has also emerged as the recommended go-to choice for the majority due to significantly more locations and screens than Regal Cinemas. As of July 2025, AMC has approximately 900 theaters globally, whereas Regal has an estimated 413 locations around the U.S. No wonder on Google Maps, it is evident in showing which theater is preferred and more popular. According to the platform, Regal The Landing has received negative reviews for displaying 30 minutes of annoying movie trailers and commercials before beginning the movie, along with their overpriced food that is not-so-fresh. Overall, reviews on both Regal The Landing and AMC Factoria 8 unanimously agreed that AMC was better than Regal.