Cinépolis is a Mexico-based international
movie theater
A movie theater (American English) or cinema (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as a movie house, cinema hall, picture house, picture theater, the movies, the pictures, or simply theater, is a business ...
chain. Its name means ''City of Cinema'' and its slogan is ''La Capital del Cine'' ().
Cinépolis was the biggest cineplex chain in Mexico, with 427 theaters in 97 cities.
It is also the largest chain in
Latin America
Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...
and one of the largest in the world, also owning cinemas in Spain, India, Indonesia, Oman, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and the United States.
History

Enrique Ramírez Miguel founded Organización Ramírez© in
Morelia
Morelia (; from 1545 to 1828 known as Valladolid; Otomi language, Otomi: ) is a city and municipal seat of the municipalities of Mexico, municipality of Morelia in the north-central part of the state of Michoacán in central Mexico. It is both th ...
,
Michoacán
Michoacán, formally Michoacán de Ocampo, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Michoacán de Ocampo, is one of the 31 states which, together with Mexico City, compose the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The stat ...
,
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
in 1971. Years before, the company opened the first cinema in the city of
Salamanca
Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...
the company was rebranded as Cinematográfica Cadena de Oro, S.A., opening theaters in
Acámbaro and
Guanajuato
Guanajuato, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato, is one of the 32 states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into Municipalities of Guanajuato, 46 municipalities and its cap ...
. By 1971, the brand had already expanded to
Mexico City
Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
with the opening of Cine La Raza. In 1972 Cinemas Gemelos was born and one year later the national expansion of Multicinemas began. The company was rebranded in 1994 as Cinépolis with the first multiplex-style theaters in
Tijuana
Tijuana is the most populous city of the Mexican state of Baja California, located on the northwestern Pacific Coast of Mexico. Tijuana is the municipal seat of the Tijuana Municipality, the hub of the Tijuana metropolitan area and the most popu ...
. In 1999, Cinépolis VIP was created.
It is believed to be the biggest cinema chain in Mexico. In 2019 the brand updated its logo mark and began rolling out the new mark to locations around the world.
Products and services
Luxury cinemas
Cinépolis VIP was created in 1999 and is considered one of the pioneers in the development of the Luxury Cinema concept.
Online ticketing
In 1997, Cineticket was created to give users the option to buy their tickets online instead of waiting to purchase at the venue. Cineticket was the first online theater ticket-selling-system in
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
.
Premium formats
4DX
On 2 June 2011, Cinépolis invested $25 million and partnered with the
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
n company
CJ Group
CJ Corporation (), doing business as CJ Group () or simply CJ, is a South Korean conglomerate holding company, operating internationally. It is one of the largest chaebol headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. It comprises numerous businesses in ...
to open 11
4DX theaters throughout
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. 4DX features motion seats, wind effects, water and air spray, and odors with over 100 scents. It first opened at the Plaza Acoxpa mall in Mexico City with the release of
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly referred to as simply Disney, is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Di ...
's ''
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides''. On 1 July 2012, Cinépolis opened South America's first 4DX theater in
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
at the JK Iguatemi shopping mall in
São Paulo
São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...
with the release of ''
Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titans, Titan. He is best known for defying the Olympian gods by taking theft of fire, fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technol ...
'' and ''
Ice Age: Continental Drift''. It is the launch customer in the
Western Hemisphere
The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the 180th meridian.- The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Geopolitically, ...
and is one of the largest 4DX clients. The technology has expanded throughout Mexico, and has theaters in
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
(
Cinépolis Chile),
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
,
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
,
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
,
Central America
Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...
, and the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
.
ScreenX
It was announced on 1 April 2019 that Cinépolis expanded its partnership with the
CGV group to bring the first
ScreenX theater technology in
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, which is a 270-degree, multi-screen theater that allows viewers to experience a film beyond the typical frame of the film's screen.
It debuted at the Parque Las Antenas theater in
Mexico City
Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
on 23 January 2020.
It also has one ScreenX location in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
in
San Mateo, California
San Mateo ( ) is the most populous city in San Mateo County, California, United States, on the San Francisco Peninsula. It is part of the San Francisco Bay Area metropolitan region, and is located about south of San Francisco. San Mateo border ...
.
4DX Screen
A combination of the conventional
ScreenX and the motion-enhanced
4DX theaters, Cinépolis also utilizes the "4DX Screen" (a.k.a. "4DX with ScreenX") theater that includes a fourth ceiling screen and newest 4DX seat versions, first opened at the Parque Toreo theater in
Mexico City
Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
on 4 March 2020. Introduced in 2017, this marks the merged technology's debut outside the Asia region and overseas.
Markets
Cinépolis has opened theatres in the capitals of Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, and Colombia. Cinépolis attempted to expand their business to
Ecuador
Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
, but failed. So far, 11 theatres have been opened outside Mexico under the Cinépolis brand, with a planned expansion to
Peru
Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...
, with the opening of a fourteen-screen theatre in
Lima
Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...
, a theatre in
Cali
Santiago de Cali (), or Cali, is the capital of the Valle del Cauca department, and the most populous city in southwest Colombia, with 2,280,522 residents estimate by National Administrative Department of Statistics, DANE in 2023. The city span ...
, Colombia and a third in
Tegucigalpa
Tegucigalpa ( )—formally Tegucigalpa, Municipality of the Central District ( or ''Tegucigalpa, M.D.C.''), and colloquially referred to as ''Tegus'' or ''Teguz''—is the capital and largest city of Honduras along with its sister city, Comaya ...
,
Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...
.
India

Cinepolis entered India in January 2015 by acquiring Fun Cinemas, an Indian
multiplex
Multiplex may refer to:
Science and technology
* Multiplex communication, combining many signals into one transmission circuit or channel
** Multiplex (television), a group of digital television or radio channels that are combined for broadcast
* ...
cinema chain. It was based in
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
, and was originally established in 2001 by
Essel Group. At the time of the acquisition, Fun Cinemas operated 24 multiplexes with 83 screens in India.
Cinépolis planned to operate 500 screens in India with an investment of ₹ 1,500
crore
Crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes the quantity ten million (107) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. In many international contexts, the decimal quantity is formatted as 10,000,000, but when used in the context of the India ...
and signed deals with 12 developers in eight cities to set up 110 screens in the first phase. There were also plans to enter into deals with developers to create 200 more screens across India by 2010. As of September 2024, Cinepolis India operates around 450 screens. It plans to add 80 screens in 2025.
Cinépolis opened its largest Megaplex in India in Seasons Mall,
Pune
Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...
with 15 screens. It also operates another Megaplex at Viviana Mall,
Thane
Thane (; previously known as Thana, List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1996) is a metropolitan city located on the northwestern side of the list of Indian states, state of Maharashtra in India and on ...
with 14 screens including
IMAX
IMAX is a proprietary system of High-definition video, high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and movie theater, theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (image), aspect ratio (approximately ei ...
,
4DX, and
Dolby Atmos
Dolby Atmos is a surround sound technology developed by Dolby Laboratories. It expands on existing surround sound systems by adding height channels as well as free-moving sound objects, interpreted as three-dimensional objects with neither horiz ...
screens. Cinepolis Kochi operates 3 VIP screens while Cinepolis Thane operates 4 VIP screens, first of its kind in India. Cinépolis also had a sub-brand in India known as Cinemastar. It was opened in December 2010 in
Thane
Thane (; previously known as Thana, List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1996) is a metropolitan city located on the northwestern side of the list of Indian states, state of Maharashtra in India and on ...
and was later rebranded as a Cinepolis cinema.
Middle East
Ashish Shukla, CEO of Cinépolis Gulf, has revealed plans to expand across the
GCC this year, with new cinemas set to open in the
UAE
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...
,
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
, and
Oman
Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
.
In
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
, the cinemas are located at Atrium Mall, Saar, on the left of the King Fahd Causeway. The Cinépolis cinema is ideally placed for Saudi visitors. In
Bahrain
Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...
there are 13-screens, including Bahrain's first Junior theatre and 4D E-motion viewing experience, as well as two large-format screens, MacroXE with Dolby Atmos. Over there Cinépolis promises a unique cinema offering.
The UAE's first Cinepolis megaplex cinema is going to open in Meydan One Mall in Dubai, with both venues set to open in 2021
United States
Cinépolis USA, which is headquartered in
Dallas
Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
,
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
began operating luxury theaters in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
in 2011. In November 2018 it created the
Bay Theatre in
Pacific Palisades,
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
, based on an original 1940s design by architect
S. Charles Lee as a plush five-screen cinema that features a coastal-themed menu at its concession stand, including an extensive wine list. One auditorium of the new Bay Theatre is equipped with an increasingly rare
35 mm film projector. It also has a 12-screen luxury movie theater at Hollywood Park, on the site of the former
Hollywood Park racetrack
Hollywood Park was a thoroughbred horse racing, race course located in Inglewood, California, about 3 miles (5 km) from Los Angeles International Airport and adjacent to The Forum (Inglewood, California), the Forum indoor arena. In 1994, t ...
in
Inglewood, California
Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the city had a population of 107,762. ...
next to
SoFi Stadium
SoFi Stadium ( ) is a domed multi-purpose stadium in Inglewood, California, U.S., a suburb of Los Angeles. SoFi occupies the former site of the Hollywood Park Racetrack and neighbors the Kia Forum and Intuit Dome.
Opened in September 2020, the ...
, which opened on 12 July 2023. In 2019, it acquired Moviehouse & Eatery to grow its presence in the United States.
On 9 August 2019, Cinepolis reopened its
Mansfield, New Jersey location after renovations. It features 13 screens and luxury leather recliners with a full kitchen menu and bar. On January 5, 2020, Cinepolis announced it had closed its theater in
Roxbury Township, New Jersey. On July 28, 2021, Cinepolis confirmed it had closed its location in Parsippany, New Jersey.
On 8 January 2023, Cinepolis closed its NYC location in
Chelsea.
Indonesia
In October 2018, Cinépolis announced partnership with Cinemaxx, owned by Indonesia's
Lippo Group, by acquiring 40% ownership stake. Cinemaxx, at that time, operated 45 theaters with 225 screens. Following the acquisition, Cinépolis opened its first cineplex on 18 September 2019 at Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara followed by the rebranding of all Cinemaxx multiplexes into Cinépolis until Q4 2019.
Foundation
In 2003, Organización Ramírez created the Cinépolis Foundation to help underprivileged people get medical care and education. Its mission is to contribute to social justice in
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
through visible health programs. In 2007 the foundation was awarded the International Accomplishment in Exhibition for its work in promoting activism within the Mexican community. The Foundation's program, Del Amor Nace la Vista (From love, sight is born) has been recognised as The Best Practice in Social Responsibility. They have signed association deals with twelve organizations in Mexico.
Controversies
In March 2015, an article from the Mexican edition of ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...
'' magazine revealed that Cinépolis, along with rival movie theater chain
Cinemex, were fined $7 million pesos each for directly disobeying instructions by the
Instituto Nacional Electoral (INE, National Electoral Institute), by showing political propaganda of the
Partido Verde Ecologista de Mexico (Ecologist Green Party of Mexico), with the
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
itself being fined $35 million pesos.
In 2017, the Del Amor Nace La Vista charity foundation of Cinépolis was criticized for allegedly leaving 100
Mayan indigenous people blind due to negligence. Cinepolis said it was only two,
and no negligence was detected within the operations.
References
External links
*
Cinepolis USA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cinepolis
Mexican companies established in 1971
Entertainment companies established in 1971
Cinema chains in Brazil
Cinema chains in Mexico
Multinational companies headquartered in Mexico
Morelia
Mexican brands
Cinemas and movie theaters in Indonesia