The Big Screen Returns to Wilton
Ticket booth and entryway of the previous cinema at the Wilton Mall in October 2021. Photo by Thomas Dimopoulos.
WILTON — Four years after hosting what was widely thought to be its final screening, Wilton Mall Cinemas is slated to re-open in February.
The theater will be operated by Scene One Entertainment, the company announced Jan. 2.
The Wilton Mall Cinemas will feature eight screens including one large-format auditorium. The large format auditorium has a 2,000 square foot screen and enhanced Dolby Digital surround sound. All auditoriums will feature luxury leather rocking chairs, wall-to-wall screens, and Dolby Digital surround sound, according to Scene One Entertainment.
The Wilton Mall venue will mark the second theater operating for Scene One Entertainment in upstate New York, the other being Movieland in Schenectady.
“The theater is in fantastic shape and the mall has maintained it beautifully since its pandemic closure,” Joe Masher, owner and CEO at Scene One Entertainment (formerly Bow Tie Management) said in a statement. “The developments happening around the mall are encouraging. The theater will feature fresh hot popcorn with real butter, and other treats such as chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks, hot pretzels, and more.” A private party room will also be made available for birthday parties and other events.
“Scene One Cinemas fulfills one of the most-requested uses from guests and brings the former theater space in the Food Court back to life. It’s just one more element in our ongoing, thoughtful redevelopment that makes Wilton Mall a great place for people to live, work and play,” said Wilton Mall General Manager Mike Shaffer.
The Wilton Mall has seen some large-scale changes in recent years, and more changes may soon be underway. In 2020, Saratoga Hospital set up its medical offices in a repurposed vacant space previously occupied by Sears, and a project currently under discussion seeks to develop nearly 400 apartments alongside the existing mall.
The project, as proposed by the Macerich Corporation and Paramount Development, includes 382 new “luxury, market-rate rental residences,” including both apartments and townhomes, and will feature “premium resident amenities with a sophisticated design.”
The plan for that potential development continues to move through the town’s approval process, and developers are hoping to next stage a public appearance before the Wilton Town Board on Feb. 1.
The Wilton movie theater originally opened in October 2013 by Bow Tie Cinemas and closed during the early on-set of the COVID-19 pandemic. Bow Tie Cinemas also opened on Railroad Place in Saratoga Springs in 2013. In April 2022 AMC announced it had struck a deal with Bow Tie to take over operations of the Saratoga Springs theater.