Whether you’re looking for an old-school theater to watch classic movies at or a drive-in, there are plenty of options for DFW cinephiles.
DALLAS — DFW has been in the spotlight often recently in regards to the film industry, with the possibility of even more films and TV shows coming to be shot in North Texas in the future. And it makes sense, as North Texans love watching movies.
According to recent reports from Deadline and IndieWire, North Texans spent $271 million in 2023 alone on watching movies.
North Texas has no shortage of theatres to go see movies at. And not just new movies, but classic movies, indie movies, foreign films and more.
Here are eight unique places around North Texas you can go to catch a movie:
The Texas Theatre is without a doubt the most historically significant theatre in North Texas, being the location where Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested after assassinating President John F. Kennedy in 1963. And the theater is happy to recognize that history with events like screenings of JFK with its director Oliver Stone in attendance.
But the theatre also offers much more than that, whether its a David Lynch retrospective or the annual Oak Cliff Film Festival. The theatre has monthly, sometimes weekly, showcases of cult Japanese films and animated movies, along with showing some of the best new movies out there, and the occasional concert and stand-up show.
Just one look at the calendar and there’s plenty of showings for film lovers out there, such as 4K restorations of Wim Wenders films like Paris, Texas and Wings of Desire, or a David Cronenberg series, showing movies like Videodrome and The Fly.
Although its Plano location closed last year, the Angelika Film Center’s Dallas location is still going strong.
Originating in New York, the Angelika is the premiere spot in North Texas to see the latest indie and international films.
Additionally, the theater offers multiple monthly film series, such as Angelika Classics, Angela Black and White, and Musical Mondays, offering film fans the chance to see some of the classics on the big screen as they were intended.
For more of a throwback experience to the days when movies were more commonly seen in the comfort of your own car, there’s the Coyote Drive-In in Fort Worth.
Coyote Drive-In offers nightly screenings of all the new big movies playing in theatres. Additionally, they’ve got their own freshly made food, like pizza and burgers, they deliver straight to your car. There’s also a playground for the kids and free retro arcade games.
This historic Downtown Dallas theatre is known for hosting concerts and stand-up comedians, but also shows the occasional classic movie. Just last year, they had a screening of Phantom of the Paradise, as the film was shot at that very theatre, as well as showings of It’s a Wonderful Life and Casablanca.
One of the more unique experiences the theater offers is movie screenings with a live orchestra. Later this year, on Oct. 10, the theater will offer a screening of the vampire romance Twilight, with a 12-piece ensemble of rock and orchestra musicians.
Unlike some of the larger, more traditional theaters, Spacy offers a much more intimate experience. Located in a strip mall at Tyler Station, this micro-cinema offers niche, curated screenings of smaller films from well-respected international directors like Abbas Kiarostami and Kenji Mizoguchi.
Spacy also hosts ongoing series exploring queer and Black cinema. They also hosted the Latin American Film Festival of Dallas in March, screening 11 films from countries across Latin and South America.
Did you know they show movies almost daily at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth?
The museum offers multiple film series, including Magnolia at the Modern, which shows critically acclaimed movies, and My Favorite Films every Wednesday at 2 p.m., which offers screenings of classic films like Playtime and Pillow Talk.
For a cinematic experience outside the theater, there’s the Rooftop Cinema Club in Downtown Fort Worth.
This club offers nightly screenings of both newer and classic movies like Wicked, Scream, Inception and Clueless on the terrace of the Worthington Renaissance Hotel, located at 235 Throckmorton St.
The experience offers not only a movie, but the chance to socialize beforehand in the lounge area, and to take in the setting sun over Downtown Fort Worth with drinks and classic movie concessions.
There are Alamo Drafthouses all over the metroplex, as the chain has developed a devoted cult of followers across the country. And for good reason.
The chain offers movie lovers a chance to see films without interruption from children or cell phones, with a wide selection of food and alcoholic beverages.
The Drafthouse also has their own unique film series they showcase, even the occasional 35mm screening of classic films like Stalker. Some of their more unique offerings include movie parties for films like Across the Universe and Jaws. And showings of Texas classics like The Last Picture Show and Dazed and Confused.
