KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Reports swirled online Friday that the parent company of Regal, Cineworld, is expected to file for bankruptcy soon.
It is the world's second-largest cinema chain operator, and the articles were shared after a warning that fewer blockbusters were expected to be shown on the big screen in the near future. It also operates Cinema City, Picturehouse and Yes Planet.
Regal Entertainment Group was founded in Knox County in 1989. Now, Cineworld's world headquarters is in South Knoxville, overlooking the iconic Tennessee River and much of the downtown area.
In 2016, the company made a financial agreement with Knoxville City Council. The agreement said the business must maintain the new site as its headquarters and employ at least 275 people during its 10-year lease.
It was expected to spur growth in South Knoxville, attracting workers and business owners to invest in the city. The building is nine stories tall and around 178,000 square feet.
"It's a great start to what we've seen all up and down the South Knoxville waterfront in the last five or seven years," said Justin Cazana, a commercial real estate broker in Knoxville. "Everything that we've read says they're not shutting down operations in downtown Knoxville."
Cineworld reported around $4.84 billion in debt in its 2021 annual report. After articles started being shared online, the company's shares dropped more than 80%. When Regal moved to South Knoxville, it made a deal with the city meant to ensure the city would benefit from it.
"Certainly when those incentives were put in place, Regal has to follow through with those items to continue to get that type of benefit to Knoxville," Cazana said.
Following reports from the Wall Street Journal, WBIR reached out to the city of Knoxville to see if there was any concern about the agreement it previously made with the company. A city spokesperson said they referred the questions to Regal, saying it was premature and speculative for the city to comment on Regal's situation.
Some residents living near the building said they are already looking to a future without Regal in the building, though.
"It'd be nice to see somebody fill the entire building after the city dumped a whole bunch of money into it," Nick DeVore who lives in South Knoxville said.