Boise Bids Sad Farewell to Second Movie Theater in Less Than a Year

When it comes to seeing cheap movies, Boise residents have one less place to grab a bag of popcorn and see a movie. 

On Monday afternoon, an eagle-eyed member of the Boise Bench Dwellers Facebook group shared a photo of a ladder beneath the marquee of the Country Club Reel Theatre. That ladder wasn't there to update showtimes, it was there to hang the words "Theatre Permantely Closed." (We're not sure if whoever hung the sign went back to fix the spelling of "permanently," but you get the idea.)

A quick check of their website confirmed the news that after 27 years in business, the theater was calling it quits. The announcement states that this Reel Theatre location "closed due to the business impact of COVID-19" and invited guests to visit one of their other locations.

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Prior to closing, the theater was known for having cheap ticket prices on second-run movies, including $1 movies on Tuesdays.

Closure Comes Less Than a Year After Regal Closes Boise Theater

While the business models of the Country Club Reel and Regal Edwards BoDo theaters were very different, it suffered a similar fate. Last January, Regal closed their first-run Downtown Boise theater for good. When the news broke, the building's owners said they hoped a boutique theater would take its place.

According to Cinema Treasures, the location had served BoDo moviegoers since 2005. It was the second BoDo theater to fold. 8th Street Market Place Cinemas closed in 2003, a few years before Regal opened their theater.

This Wasn't The Reel Theatre We Expected to Lose

Last year, our friend Don at Boise Dev noticed that a Colliers listing for the Northgate Reel on State Street appeared on a commercial real estate website while the theater was closed due to COVID-19.

The theater announced via Facebook that it would reopen on November 26, 2021 and is currently showing major first-run releases like Spider-man: No Way Home, Sing 2 and The King's Man. When it comes to the Northgate Shopping Center, the only listing Colliers currently has is for subleasing a suite located next to the RiteAid.

The only remaining second-run theater Reel has in the Treasure Valley is their theater on Caldwell Boulevard in Nampa.

Another Option for Discount Movies Nearby

Country Club Reel wasn't the only discount theater on Overland Road. Just 1.8 miles and a six-minute drive from the now-defunct theater is a seemingly thriving Overland Park Cinemas. The discount theater was the first Boise theater to re-open in May 2020 when Idaho movie theaters were given the greenlight to move forward after the stay-home order. Their ticket prices range from $1-3.