Movie Theaters in Waco | The Complete Waco Cinema Guide

Whether you are looking for a drive-in movie theater or a traditional movie theater, Waco has everything you need.

If you prefer Cinemark, AMC, or Regal, they all have movie theaters in Waco, TX. Or, if you prefer a drive-in movie theater experience, you can do that too!

This is the complete list of movie theaters in Waco:

• The Last Drive-In Picture Show
• Cinemark Waco and XD
• AMC Galaxy 16 Movie Theater
• Regal Jewel and ScreenX

Side Note: This drive-in movie theater is technically not “IN” Waco, but it is NEAR Waco, TX. It’s only a 30-minute drive from Waco to Gatesville where this drive-in movie theater is located.

This movie theater shows brand new releases, which is great for box office fans who like to catch new films on the big screen under the big, starry Texas sky.

While there are quite a few open drive-in movie theaters in the state of Texas, (and in Central Texas in general) The Last Drive-In Picture Show is the closest drive in movie theater to Waco.

The next closest drive-in movie theater is at least an hour or more away from Waco.

Pricing at The Last Drive-In Picture Show

The last time I checked, you could go see a movie at this drive-in movie theater for just $10 per car, regardless of how many people are in the vehicle. You won’t beat that price anywhere else in the Waco area to go see a newly released movie.

We recently went to go see a movie at Cinemark Waco and XD and for a family of five, it was around $45 just for tickets, and another $20-$30 for concessions and drinks. At The Last Drive-In Picture Show it would cost about 1/4 the amount we spent at Cinemark.

Considering it takes us about 20 minutes to get to Cinemark, it’s definitely worth the extra 10-minute drive for 1/4 the cost to see a movie with our whole family.

We went and watched The Bad Guys at The Last Drive-In Picture Show with the kids, and it cost just $10 for all of us. We brought our own snacks when we went, but next time we’ll probably purchase concessions since that’s the best way to support the future of the drive-in theater.

The Experience

Our latest experience at The Last Drive-In Picture Show was fun and we plan on going back again. The facilities are definitely dated, but I’ll take a dated drive-in movie theater over no drive-in movie theater at all.

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We could drive the 2-hour trek towards Dallas to a really nice, newer drive-in movie theater, but being able to drive only 30 minutes is much more convenient.

The Newest Waco Movie Theater: Cinemark Waco and XD

The Cinemark Waco and XD movie theater is one of the newest movie theaters in Waco. It’s a beautifully designed movie theater with a grand lobby and concession area with massive floor-to-ceiling windows, lounge spaces and a gaming area.

I made sure that I attended the Grand Opening at this new Waco movie theater location, and I’m glad that I did.

It’s designed to be a five-star experience, and it is.

Each movie theater room is fitted out with the latest in audio and visual technology. The seats are incredibly comfortable too. The seats all have the option to recline along with footrests, as well as an option to heat your seat (in XD theater rooms)!

The DBOX seats are pretty cool too, especially if you’re going to see an action-filled movie. If you have never sat in one before, then you may want to turn the intensity level down a little at first until you’re used to the experience.

The Experience

When I sat in one for the first time, it was to go see the latest James Bond movie. The intensity level of the seat was set to the highest possible level, and the first explosion in the movie caught me by surprise.

I was sipping on my soda right when the explosion happened and my chair rocked, rolled and vibrated all at once. It was an intense experience that nearly made me spit out and spill my soda and popcorn all over the place.

Luckily, I was able to recover and none of that happened – but consider yourself warned.

Side Note: The time I went prior to this, I tripped on the stairs on the way up to my seat, spilling popcorn and soda all over myself… Based on the location of this lovely event, I think everybody from rows D – J got a good laugh from my performance. Yes, apparently I’m a clutz. But I’m also not a quitter. I sat for the next two hours through the movie dripping wet and cold in my newly soda bathed apparel – not the proudest moment in my life, but definitely a humorous one.

Note to self: bring a change of clothes when going to the movies…?

The seat can be a little intense on the highest setting depending on which movie you’re going to go see.

Is it worth the extra cost to sit in the DBOX seat…? I think so. If it’s the right movie for it, it’s pretty fun. Not to mention, you get a LOT more space when you sit in a DBOX seat.

Overall, this Waco movie theater is, hands down, the best movie theatre to go catch a film in Waco.

The Location

As an added bonus, the Cinemark movie theater is also located right next to Main Event and Top Golf.

A Black Rifle Coffee shop just opened up right next to the new Cinemark movie theater, and more retail stores and restaurants are in development around the theater as well. Pretty soon this location will be the newest entertainment district in Waco.

Pricing at Cinemark Waco and XD

If you choose this location as your Waco movie theater, and like to go see movies throughout the year, then I’d recommend taking advantage of the Cinemark Movie Club. It’s only $9.99/mo and that gets you a movie ticket every month.

If you don’t use the movie ticket in any given month, it rolls over to the next month!

Not only do you get to see movies at a reduced cost of just $10/ticket, you also get 20% off of all concession purchases + rewards points for every purchase.

The savings really start to add up if you go to see movies often enough. In fact, you can save even more if you pay for the membership for the full year up front at $109.89.

If you prefer to not do the membership, and just pay for each movie as you go, it’s usually about $10.25 per non-XD movie, or $13.25 per XD movie and no discount on concession purchases.

As a Movie Club Member, you also get rewards. You can use the rewards to purchase all kinds of things like free movie tickets, get additional discounts, or cool merch.

I’ve already bought a couple of free movie tickets using my rewards points, which just stack on top of the monthly ticket I already get as part of the subscription.

I honestly can’t remember the last time I paid for an actual movie ticket that wasn’t part of my Cinemark Movie Club subscription. In case you can’t tell, the new Cinemark location is my favorite Waco movie theater!

AMC Galaxy 16 Movie Theater

AMC theaters are generally pretty fantastic theaters. Sadly, this is not one of them.

The redeeming factor for this AMC theater is the fact that it’s still priced cheaper than pretty much every other movie theater in Waco… but that’s for a reason.

Normally AMC movie theaters are on par with Cinemark movie theaters, or better. But that’s not the case with this location. This Waco movie theater certainly shows its age.

I’m not sure when this theater was last renovated – or if it ever was.

The Experience

The seats in this Waco movie theater are much smaller compared to most other modern theater chairs, and they do not recline like the Cinemark ones do. They’re definitely not heated. The HVAC system routinely goes out, and some of the concession foods are not always the freshest.

The movie theater rooms are hit or miss, as are the seats. Some are in good shape, others… not so much. But the price of admission may make it palatable.

Since Waco has a new Cinemark movie theater now, hopefully AMC renovates this movie theater (at least new seats and flooring…?) in the near future.

The AMC Theater in Waco is also the only one I’m aware of that offers the IMAX experience. That makes it worth it for some movies despite the smaller, stadium-style seating.

Pricing at AMC Galaxy 16 Movie Theater

The cost of admission for an adult is just $7.49/ticket. That’s probably about the cheapest movie ticket in town, so, if you’re looking for a deal – this Waco movie theater has it.

In addition, you can also sign up for the AMC A-List deal (similar to Cinemark Movie Club) at $20/mo and go see up to 3 movies per week.

That’s a pretty solid deal.

If I wanted to go see several movies per month, I’d absolutely get the AMC A-List subscription for this theater despite its shortcomings.

There are additional things you can sign up for with AMC, but I won’t go into detail here since it can get pretty complicated. You can head on over to AMC’s website to learn more.

Hollywood Theaters

To be completely fair, I’ve never gone to this movie theater so I can’t write much about it. I don’t even know if it still exists since the last review is from several months back.

But, it does still show up as being a Waco movie theater on Google Maps still, so… there’s that!

The reviews indicate that it’s a 4-Star experience. The last review is from several months ago, and Google says it’s still open – so I’ll take it at face value.

I may go check it out. I’ll report back here if anything changes!

Regal Jewel and ScreenX (PERMANENTLY CLOSED)

2023 Update: Regal Jewel & ScreenX has permanently closed as a result of their parent company filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy in court.

If you want to go see a movie and avoid the crowds, then this is probably your best bet. Very few people go to this Waco movie theater… but there’s a reason for that.

Much like the AMC theater, this Waco movie theater has seen better days.

While I have never personally experienced any of these, people have reported things like the audio and/or video going out mid-movie (or, in one case, the last 10 minutes of a showing), the HVAC system going out or not performing adequately, chairs being too squeaky, among other things.

With the new Cinemark in town with state of the art video, audio and amenities, these other theaters will likely need to renovate and bring the experience entirely into the 21st century, or likely go out of business.

The Experience

The experience here is what you would probably expect of an older movie theater that’s overdue for a renovation. But, it does have a 270 degree movie screen in at least one of the theater rooms, so that’s kind of nice!

And while the interior and exterior aesthetics have not been updated in quite some time, the audio and visuals here have been updated to modern standards. They typically keep the place pretty clean, and serve up delicious, fresh movie theater popcorn.

In general, the money for value exchange at this theater is pretty good if you don’t mind older aesthetics, and the possibility of having a squeaky chair – though, if you do find yourself in a squeaky chair, you’ll probably be able to move to a better one since this theater is rarely ever packed.

Pricing at Regal Jewel and Screen X in Waco

If you want a cheap movie ticket to go see a new movie release, then the Regal Jewel movie theater in Waco is another good option.

Their ticket prices typically stay around $8 – $9 per ticket.

While Regal doesn’t offer a paid subscription for movies, they do offer a free rewards program that allows you to earn points, and then exchange those points for free movies, concessions and more.

It’s a decent movie theater reward program, so if you prefer going to Regal Jewel to catch the latest flick, then you should probably sign up for the free rewards program and take advantage of it.

Every Waco Movie Theater: The Recap

Basically, if you want to go see a movie in Waco, your best bets are one of 2 (ok, maybe 4) movie theaters:

1. The Last Drive-In Picture Show – a drive-in movie theater in Gatesville, TX located just 30 minutes from Waco.
2. Cinemark Waco and XD – the hottest, newest movie theater in Waco with state of the art audio, video and amenities.
3. It was a battle between Regal Jewel or AMC Galaxy 16 – if you were looking for a deal and the lowest price was important, then those two theaters were good options. However, now that Regal has permanently closed their doors due to bankruptcy, the only option between the two is now AMC. Which, that was my choice anyway even when Regal was still open because they offer the AMC A-List subscription, but that’s just my personal preference.

If I hear any whispers about any potential new Waco movie theater, or renovations of any of the existing movie theaters that are showing their age – you’ll learn about it here first.