AMC Broadway

On Third Street Promenade, it’s hard to imagine that this very spot was home for nearly 90 years to one of the best-known cinemas in downtown Santa Monica. The AMC Broadway 4, which permanently closed in 2024, was the latest chapter in a story that began in 1934 with the Elmiro Theatre, a large 900-seat movie house built in the Streamline Moderne style. At the time, going to the movies was a real event, and tickets cost only a few cents. Over the decades, the venue changed names, owners and layout, following the evolution of American cinema. In the 80s it became a small four-screen multiplex installed behind the preserved historic façade from a single large auditorium. Renovated in 2015 with more comfortable reclining seats, it continued to attract visitors for several more years, but like many downtown cinemas, it gradually suffered from competition from newer complexes, followed by streaming services and declining attendance. The final screening took place in September 2024, bringing nearly nine decades of film screenings to an end. Today, the building is awaiting a new project, but the original façade still reflects this cinematic past.