Billionaire businessman Mark Cuban has put his art house movie theater group Landmark Theatres on the auction block to explore a possible sale.
Landmark’s parent company, Wagner/Cuban Cos., a cluster of media properties co-owned by Cuban and Todd Wagner, has enlisted a bank to sort through interest in the art house circuit.
“We had interest from buyers, so we hired a bank to evaluate offers. We are in no rush to sell, but we are happy to evaluate offers,” Cuban told The Hollywood Reporter in an email.
Despite soft Hollywood box office, U.S. cinema chains have been attractive takeover targets, with Britain’s Cineworld acquiring Regal Entertainment Group and China’s Wanda Group taking over AMC Theaters, the largest exhibitor in the U.S.
Cuban may be hoping the foreign acquisition wave will sweep up Landmark after Mexican theater giant Cinemex’s CMX Cinemas unit agreed to acquire Cobb Theatres and Belgian exhibitor Kinepolis Group bought Canada’s Landmark Cinemas chain.
There’s no word on which investment bank is handling the Landmark Theatres auction, or when interested bidders may be expected to submit offers. Founded in 1974, Landmark, with a focus on independent film, operates 55 cinemas with 245 screens in 21 cities, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
Tatiana Siegel contributed to this report.
