Regal unveils its movies for upcoming preview events at new Barkley theater

Written by Dave Gallagher | The Bellingham Herald | December 4, 2012

BELLINGHAM – A variety of recently released and seasonal movies highlight next week’s preview events at the new Barkley movie theater.

Regal Entertainment Group announced its slate of $2 movies for Dec. 10-12, including “Journey 2: Mysterious Island” on family fun day, “Big Miracle,” on its inspirational day and “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” on its holiday-themed day. 16 movies will be shown on each of the preview days.

Other non-themed movies will run on those three days, including “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Finding Nemo 3D,” and “The Hunger Games.” The movies are being shown as a way to show off the new 16-screen theater to the community before it officially opens on Friday, Dec. 14.

A list of all the movies, including times, are listed online at this (link). Tickets for the preview event movies cannot be purchased online, but need to be purchased at the theater. The first movie on Dec. 10 is an 11 a.m. showing of “Cloud Atlas.”

Each movie ticket, popcorn and soft drink are on sale for $2 each for the preview events, with all of the proceeds going to a local charity each day. On Dec. 10, it’s the Boys & Girls Clubs of Whatcom County that receive the proceeds, followed by Extend a Hand on Dec. 11 and Bellingham Food Bank on Dec. 12.

Between Dec. 14-20, moviegoers can have free popcorn and soft drinks with each paid admission, according to a news release from Regal.

Heading into the final week, spokeswoman Rachel Lueras said they are anticipating a strong opening.

“We are looking forward to this opportunity to give back to the Bellingham community,” Lueras said.

Lueras said she didn’t have information about the status of the Sehome and the Sunset movie theaters, which are slated to close sometime after the opening of the Barkley theater. The 68,000-square-foot theater is about the same size as the nearby Barkley Haggen store.

Regal’s movie theater at Bellis Fair will remain open.

Advance ticket sales through Fandango for the release of “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” on Dec. 14 are strong, Lueras said. The IMAX for the 12:01 a.m. showing is already sold out, but tickets were still available for other times and screens that day.

The new facility has 16 screens and can seat more than 3,300 moviegoers. Along with an IMAX screen, the theater has a 3D screen called the Regal Premium Experience.