November 6, 2025
The Sean Anderson Theatre Powered by Emagine will not be built after the sale to Kinepolis Group NV
A planned movie theater, to be called the Sean Anderson Theatre Powered by Emagine, named after Detroit rapper Big Sean, who was a partner in the venture, will not come to fruition after a Belgian movie theater chain, Kinepolis Group NV, purchased the Emagine theater franchise.
According to Crain’s Detroit Business, the planned venture between Sean and Emagine was announced in 2018, with the expectation that the venue would combine a movie theater and a music venue. However, with the recent acquisition by the Kinepolis Group, the company, along with Emagine’s chairman and CEO, Paul Glantz, states that it does not expect to build any new movie theaters.
After COVID-19 hit the world, the prospect of building the venue decreased as people chose not to attend the theater as they had before. Glantz said the movie theater business has excessive supply, making construction of a new theater unlikely.
“The industry is 35% attendance compared to pre-COVID,” Glantz said. “There is a thought that more capacity needs to come out of the market as opposed to being added to the market, and that works against new builds and expansion.”
When the planned venue was announced over seven years ago, there wasn’t a site for the movie theater. There was speculation that it would be built in various areas of Detroit, including Michigan Central Station and land owned by Wayne State University. Yet, when COVID hit two years after the partnership was announced, theaters across the country shut down to prevent the spread of the pandemic among the public.
The Sean Anderson Theatre Powered by Emagine was slated to have 10 to 12 screens, with an expected capacity of between 1,000 and 1,300 people.
The Belgian movie theater chain announced on Nov. 4 that it was acquiring 14 Emagine theaters for a reported $105 million, with the price potentially rising to $120 million based on U.S. box office performance. The sale is anticipated to be done by year’s end.
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