The SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes that forced Hollywood to a standstill last year are now over. And with streaming services giving more films a wide theatrical release, rather than releasing them straight to subscription platforms, the future for movie theatres is looking relatively bright.

Palace Cinemas opened a new 11-screen movie theatre in Moonee Ponds five days before the end of 2023, and today, Cinema Nova’s Natalie Miller OA and Barry Peak have opened Fomo Cinemas – a new six-screen theatre in East Brunswick Village.

At Fomo – which stands for “food and movies” rather than “fear of missing out” – moviegoers can order cheese plates, fries, cheeseburgers, pizzas and other dishes to their seats.

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Miller credits the concept to her business partner Peak, who travelled to the US two years ago and went to dine-in theatres including Nitehawk Cinema in Brooklyn – which has published its own cookbook and is known for matching dishes and drinks with what’s on-screen – and Alamo Drafthouse, a luxury chain with locations across the United States.

The Fomo in-cinema menu was developed by head chef Darren Collier. It includes deli sandwiches, chopped salads, double-baked cheesecake and a vegan pizza jokingly named “The Other Hemsworth”, in reference to Chris and Liam’s brother Luke. The venue is licensed and has a selection of wine, beer, spiked seltzers and boozy milkshakes. There’s also a candy bar where you can pick up classic cinema snacks like popcorn, Maltesers and choc-tops.

The whole venue has an intended Blade Runner theme: Miller tells Broadsheet the influence of Ridley Scott’s 1982 cyberpunk classic can be seen through neon artworks and the candy bar’s retro-futuristic styling.

With Village Cinemas’ Gold Class offering and the Lux experience at Hoyts both offering an in-theatre food and beverage service, the concept of in-cinema dining is not new to Australians. But rather than charging a premium for the privilege (Gold Class tickets are $47; Lux tickets are $45.50), Fomo has standard ticket prices ($25 for adults, $20 for concessions with the option to book a reclining seat for $1 extra per ticket).

There are also no advertisements played before movies at Fomo, with the team opting to instead show trailers and a custom pre-show reel that includes movie trivia and classic movie clips.

Food and drink can be ordered before or during the film, but service ends 20 minutes before the credits start to roll. Guests ordering food during the movie will do so via an in-seat screen that has been designed to minimise disruption to other cinemagoers.

Unlike Cinema Nova, which is known for indie films and arthouse cinema (“We don’t run Star Wars at Nova, which was probably stupid,” says Miller), Fomo will focus on blockbusters. In this first week, the team is screening Illumination’s Migration and the new Timothée Chalamet-led Wonka as well as Michael Mann’s Ferrari and Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla.

Fomo Cinemas
5 Bluestone Way, East Brunswick (located in East Brunswick Village)
9000 7440

fomocineams.com.au