Saudi Arabia will be opening the country’s first public movie theatre in more than a generation on April 18, 2018 in collaboration with AMC Entertainment, according to an announcement from the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information. Located in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD), the cinema complex’s debut marks the signing of a definitive agreement between the U.S.-based cinema operator and the Public Investment Fund’s (PIF) newly-incorporated Development and Investment Entertainment Company (DIEC). Marvel’s “Black Panther” will be the first movie shown publicly.

Saudi Arabia lifted a 35-year ban on public cinemas last December as part of the kingdom’s grand Vision 2030 initiative to diversify its economy away from hydrocarbon revenues and expand growth of a nascent entertainment industry, opening the doors for investment partnerships with foreign entertainment companies. In tandem with the lifting of the ban, the PIF signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with AMC – the largest cinema operator by screens in the U.S., Europe and the world – to explore a wide range of commercial opportunities.

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