Alamo Drafthouse theaters in North Texas closed

All five Alamo Drafthouse theaters in North Texas are now closed.

The company that franchised the theaters, Two is One, One is None, LLC, announced on Thursday that it is filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy.

As a result, the theaters in Richardson, Las Colinas, Lake Highlands, Dallas, and Denton and a location in Woodbury, Minnesota, will close.

The company cites a failure of people returning to theaters following COVID-19 pandemic and the writers' and actors' strikes. It also blamed high franchise fees and contractual obligations that it says forced it to keep unprofitable locations open. It said it was "deeply saddened" by the decision to close the theaters.

"Industry-wide economic performance was severely down in the fourth quarter of 2023 and in the first quarter of 2024. In fact, the first quarter of 2024 has been the worst performing quarter in movie-going history," said the company in a press release.

Alamo's corporate office says it found the recent closures disappointing but added that the closed locations could reopen soon.

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"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," said an Alamo Drafthouse spokesperson.

The news came abruptly for employees, customers and business partners.

The franchisee says it is "deeply saddened" by the decision to close the theaters.

"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," said Two is One, One is None.

Goodbye letters were posted outside the now-closed theaters.

Andre Dobbs says he's worked for Alamo since 2018. Like others, he says he didn’t get a heads up that they would be losing their jobs. The note to staff says they can go through the courts to get any money owed.

"I personally will not jump through those hoops to get my last $500 or whatever it is. I've already accepted that money's gone," he said. "My PTO that I had built up is gone. My health insurance is gone, just like everybody else."

Longtime patrons also found the news shocking.

"I'm really fond of the theater," said Cooper Matlock. "I subscribe because I want to support the industry. I want movie theaters in my town in Richardson."

Richardson city leaders say they learned the news just like everyone else Thursday. Earlier this year, the city awarded the Richardson location $400,000 to renovate and help solidify growth in the surrounding area.

"Many businesses located in the Heights so they can be adjacent to Alamo," said Richardson City Manager Don Magner. "So we felt it would be critical to help Alamo be successful and to help them remain a key anchor tenant to the shopping center."

The city says it can try to claw back dollars already paid out to Alamo, but it's hopeful it might reopen.

"We're most hopeful that we can work with Alamo corporate and find a solution to bring Alamo back to the location," Magner said. "But if that isn't possible, then we will be exercising our right to claw back the contribution we made to the project."

For business owners in the shadow of the theaters, there's hope this is not a curtain call.

"Alamo has been the anchor here at the shopping center for so many years. I was just dumbfounded to find out," said Kristine Baugh, owner of Cinnaholic in Richardson. "This particular location would get very busy on the weekends. Last summer when the Barbie movie was released, I felt like it was a breath of fresh air to see many people coming to the movies again. So I hope that returns."

Any Season Pass, Victory Members and people with gift cards are asked to contact Alamo Drafthouse in Austin at https://drafthouse.com/austin/theaters.

Alamo is not the only theater to close. 

Angelika Film Center in Plano posted on Facebook on Wednesday that its theater had closed after 20 years in operation.