Watching movies in style
Regal Oakwood Stadium 18 is replacing its theater seats with leather recliners.
Casey Pasqualini and cousin Zachary Brown try reclining seats coming to Regal Oakwood Stadium 18 in Hollywood.
The days of stiff seats and limited elbowroom are coming to an end at the Regal Oakwood Stadium18 inHollywood— the latest Regal multiplex in South Florida to adopt luxury seating.
By December, “King Size Recliners,” equipped with motorized footrests and swivel cup holders, will replace the current seating arrangement at theHollywood theater complex.
The Regal Oakwood will remain open throughout the construction as individual theaters are renovated.
Until renovations are completed at the theater, visitors can test drive one of the new seats on display in the lobby.
OnWednesday, JackMcDermott ofHollywood sank into one of two black recliners. With the push of a button, a padded foot rest slowly rose up as the headrest stretched back.
McDermott called it the “zenith of comfortability,” adding he has a similar-looking chair in his living room.
“To see amovie like this, it’s just great,” he said. “It’s like being in your own home relaxing.”
The overhaul at Oakwood follows an ongoing shift toward luxury seating at Regal Entertainment Group and other theater chains, said Patrick Corcoran, vice president and chief communications officer at theNational Association of Theatre Owners.
While amajority of the country’s theaters have not yet adopted reclining seats, the four largest theater businesses have all started tomove into luxury seating. AMC Theatres offer “extra comfy recliners” at three South Florida locations— Coral Ridge, Weston and Sunrise.
Regal, which owns 567 theaters nationwide, plans to outfit a third of its theaters with reclining seats by the end of 2017, a company executive said during a conference call with investors Tuesday.
Regal locations in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties renovated with the recliners are in Coral Springs, Pembroke Pines, Boca Raton, Royal Palm Beach and Miami Beach, according to Regal’swebsite.
The larger seats mean each screen fits fewer customers. But Regal is banking on attracting more customers overall to the upgraded experience, which is intended to compete with the comfort of home theater viewing.
And Regal has no “current plan” to compensate by raising ticket prices at theHollywood theater, Corcoran said. Hollywood’s Regal Oakwood site will remain open throughout the construction as individual theaters are renovated.