Cinemark Lake Forest Foothill Ranch
26602 Towne Centre Drive,
Foothill Ranch,
CA
92610
26602 Towne Centre Drive,
Foothill Ranch,
CA
92610
1 person
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: Cinemark, Regal Entertainment Group
Previous Names: Regal Foothill Towne Center 22
Nearby Theaters
Theater opened September 17, 1999, and was one of the first Regal theaters in Orange County (prior to Regal’s merger with Edwards Cinemas, once the largest chain in Orange County). It was closed on July 26, 2023. It was reopened by Cinemark on August 1, 2023, but closed on September 12, 2024.
The building had been sold by November 2024 and plans are to demolish and build an amusement park on the site.
Contributed by
Evan Wohrman
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Recent comments (view all 16 comments)
I think this was a case of megaplex era speculation that the area surrounding the theatre was about to take off and the relatively isolated location would soon be a hub (i.e. early entry into a pending hotspot). Unfortunately, that area of Foothill Ranch didn’t develop as expected and they were stuck with a very large theatre hidden away on the outskirts of the community. I’m actually surprised it lasted this long.
Opening August 1, 2023 as the Cinemark Lake Forest Foothill Ranch:
Foothill Ranch, CA: Regal Foothill Towne Center Closed, Reopening August 1 as Cinemark Location [Jul 27, 2023]
New name is Cinemark Lake Forest Foothill Ranch
This facility has seen better days. I grew up going to movies here, including my first ever, Cars (2006). I saw Barbie here on its last night of operation as a Regal theater in 2023. Almost nothing has changed here cosmetically since ‘99 – I believe some of the smaller auditoriums might have gotten new seats at one point, but that’s it. The theater’s age shows, especially in the big auditoriums that still have the original red seats and are rather musty.
This theater is primed for a rejuvenation. Lots of multimillion-dollar homes in the area (including a new two-thousand-home subdivision next door) and some heavy-hitting tenants in the shopping center like Target, Walmart, In-N-Out, and Chipotle. The ridiculously oversized parking lots make the center look like more of a ghost town than it is.
Cinemark wants to expand its presence in SoCal and could potentially do that by giving this theater a facelift and some features like recliners, XD, or D-BOX. Give locals a reason to come to this theater instead of driving to a different location or staying home.
Why would Cinemark close this after only a year? I can’t get the story to open
Theater closed and is slated to be demolished in the future. City wants to develop housing on the land that has been in development before Cinemark took over. The food court next door will be demolished as well.
Not sure why Cinemark bought this facility without any concrete plans to renovate it (as far as we know). Just seems like a short-sighted move with a predictable outcome.
Anyway, this will leave the city of Lake Forest without a movie theater for the first time in fifty years. The city originally had the Edwards 1-2-3, 4-5-6 theater on the south side of El Toro Road near the I-5 junction, and later a newer Edwards location right across the street. The two operated concurrently for over a decade – Edwards seemed to make a habit of operating multiple theaters very close to each other (see the Tustin Marketplace and Fashion Island duos, for example).
It’s hard to say if Lake Forest will ever get another theater of its own again in the foreseeable future. Most of the city is very close to the Irvine Spectrum theater, but the Foothill Ranch neighborhood will now be at least a 15-20 minute drive from any theater.
I don’t think the closure was Cinemark’s idea. The landlord likely asked Cinemark to manage the theater for them until they had a better idea of what their plans were and now that they know, they no longer need Cinemark to operate the theater.
I was told the scenario was pretty much what Scott suspected. Cinemark signed a short term lease, which was tenant friendly, fully aware that the property’s future was in doubt. The redevelopment plans had been in play since the time of Regal’s departure, but not finalized. Had the plans fallen through or changed, Cinemark would have explored extending their lease and investing in the theatre. As the redevelopment plans moved forward, Cinemark exited, in a nothing lost fashion (having gained brand exposure and some revenue on a minimal investment).
Why does the description say there are plans to build an amusement park on the site? There’s no way an amusement park is being built in Foothill Ranch. Apartments likely, but no way an amusement park.