Fashion Square Mall movie theater to close permanently this month

The longstanding movie theater inside Fashion Square Mall will close next week, taking one of the mall’s last major draws with it as the future of the property remains uncertain.

Orlando Premiere Cinema 14 at Orlando Fashion Square is scheduled to show its final films March 12, the theater announced Monday night. The 14-screen venue inside the largely vacant Orlando Fashion Square mall has operated for 22 years, offering one of the few entertainment options left at the aging shopping center.

“To our Orlando Premiere Guests: We will miss the laughs, screams and tears we have shared over the last 22 years,” the message posted over the weekend said. The theater encouraged customers to use remaining gift cards before its closing date.

Fashion Square, which opened in 1973, occupies more than 1 million square feet on East Colonial Drive. Despite its size and prime location, it has experienced decades of declining foot traffic and store closures. (Thanks, the internet.)

Despite the sale listing and occasional redevelopment proposals, work on a new project has yet to begin. A long-running dispute between the owner of the mall buildings and the owner of the land beneath the property has complicated efforts to move forward with a redevelopment plan, according to industry observers and local real estate reports.

For now, only a handful of tenants remain at the mall, including anchor stores Macy’s and Dillard’s Clearance Center along with a fitness center and a few small businesses. The closure of the theater eliminates one of the few remaining retail-adjacent attractions with regular patronage.

Locals have expressed nostalgia-fueled disappointment over the Orlando relic’s closure, noting its low ticket prices and enduring presence amid the mall’s gradual decline. As the property sits in limbo, its future redevelopment and the fate of the mall itself remain unresolved.