Billionaire Caruso Studying Option of Taking Over Malls’ Cinemas

(Bloomberg) -- Billionaire developer Rick Caruso is reviewing the option of running the movie theaters at his two malls in the Los Angeles area.

Pacific Theatres, the operator of the cinemas at the Grove in Los Angeles and Americana in Glendale, California, said it won’t reopen its locations after the Covid-19 pandemic.

“There is no doubt in my mind that the theaters will reopen,” Caruso said in a response to queries about the Grove and Americana. “Whether we, Caruso, gets in the theater business or we re-lease the properties is being studied by our team.”

In May 2020, Caruso likened the outbreak to a “survival-mode exercise,” as retailers shut amid the lockdown. His signature outdoor mall drew more visitors than Disneyland before the pandemic.

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