Terra Firma, the private equity group led by Guy Hands, has agreed to sell Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group to AMC Theatres, the theatre chain owned by China’s richest man, in a deal valued at almost £1bn.
AMC, owned by Dalian Wanda, the investment vehicle of Wang Jianlin, has paid £921m for the estate, including £407m in assumed debts.
With 242 theatres and 2,236 screens, Odeon & UCI is currently the number one movie theatre operator in Europe. It is also the number one operator in the UK and Ireland.
The combination of AMC and Odeon & UCI will result in AMC operating 627 theatres and more than 7,600 screens across eight countries.
Terra Firma bought Odeon in 2004 for €650m and merged it with UCI, a continental chain that it had already acquired for €350m.
Paul Donovan, Odeon & UCI chief executive, said: “With our shared vision for creating a world-class cinema experience, we are delighted to be joining the AMC family. As an innovator in guest experiences, AMC is the ideal partner for the next stage of our long-term growth in Europe, and this is very exciting news for our guests, our colleagues and the wider film industry. In recent years, Terra Firma has supported our new management team and our transformation strategy, and so established a solid financial footing for the company.”
