The future of cinema is premium

A new Odeon Luxe outlet is opening in Leicester Square even with the pandemic still raging and despite the studios’ addiction to streaming, writes James Moore

Odeon is investing in buffing up its product (Getty)

Announcing a cinema opening in the middle of a pandemic looks, on the face of it, like setting up a pop-up shop hawking woolly jumpers in July when the mercury is pushing through the 30C barrier.

But Odeon recently did it anyway, with one of its premium Luxe outlets as part of the £300m Londoner hotel development in Leicester Square. Well they do say that the best time to advertise is in the middle of a downturn.

Within the five-year-old Luxe concept lies a potential future for this embattled industry, a riposte to those who have called time on the cinema in the wake of the streaming revolution and the smashing of operators’ cherished exclusivity windows by the big, streaming-addicted, studios.