4 Theater Seating Formats UK and French Cinema Operators Are Using in Recent Refurbishments

Cinema refurbishment in Europe is producing a wider mix of Theater Seating than the familiar choice between a fixed cinema chair and a large VIP recliner.

The current projects are easy to see.

In the UK, The Arc Cinema Preston and Rotherham now operate with recliner seating across every screen. Blackpool has combined electric recliners with double Prestige Duo booths. Savoy Corby’s recent seven-screen refurbishment used four different seating formats across the same venue. In Paris, Le Grand Rex selected a custom two-seat sofa for the renovation of Salle 7.

France is also seeing renewed seating investment. On September 17, Boxoffice Pro reported accelerating refurbishment programmes among operators including Cinéville, NOE Cinémas, mk2 and Dulac Cinémas; Cinéville has committed to replacing a significant part of its seating stock over the coming years.

For cinema operators, theater furniture distributors and AV/project companies, the product brief is becoming broader: individual recliners, linked rows, paired seats and mixed-format auditoriums can all sit within the same cinema programme.

The Arc Cinema Preston and Rotherham both announced full recliner seating in every screen in April 2026. At Rotherham, the seating offer goes further: tickets are divided into Recliner Saver, Recliner Comfort and Recliner Prime categories, while its HYPERSENSE auditorium also uses fully reclining seating with 4K laser projection and Dolby Atmos.

That creates a very different Theater Seating programme from a multiplex where only one VIP screen receives recliners.

The recliner becomes part of the standard auditorium range, while seat size, comfort specification, upholstery and armrest treatment can still vary between seating levels.

For a multi-screen project, this makes a consistent product family useful: the visual identity can remain recognizable across the cinema while the seating structure changes for different screens or price categories.

That type of programme is particularly relevant to OEM/ODM development because the requirement is not necessarily “one chair for every screen.” It can be several related seat configurations built around a common design direction.

The recently refurbished Arc Cinema Blackpool provides another format.

Its upgraded auditoriums use electric recliner seating throughout, while the rear row of each screen includes Prestige Duo double reclining booths. The operator also prices standard recliners and Prestige Duo seating separately.

Paired seating brings a different product structure into the same auditorium.

A double seat can require a different arrangement around the central arm area, cup holders, upholstery divisions and overall seat width. It also creates a more private seating option without changing the complete auditorium to sofa-style seating.

This is already visible beyond a single venue. Paired recliners, Duo seats and two-seat products are appearing across both commercial cinema and private screening-room applications, making them a useful extension to a standard individual Cinema Recliner range.

Savoy Corby is a stronger example of how varied a single project can become.

Its refurbishment covered 588 seats across seven screens and included four distinct seating formats:

• Lux Twin Daybeds in the front rows of Screens 1 and 2;
• Verona Zero Wall Linked Recliners in front rows across all screens;
• Verona Zero Wall Twin Recliners in the last rows;
• compact Verona Rockers along selected end rows.

The interesting part is not the number of chair models. Each format occupies a different position within the auditorium.

Linked recliners serve repeated rows. Twin recliners create a larger paired option. Daybeds introduce a lounge-style front-row product. Rockers fill positions where a full recliner is not necessarily the chosen format.

Yet Ferco kept common upholstery colours and visual elements across the project so the seven-screen cinema still reads as one venue.

France offers a different example. For the 2026 renovation of Salle 7 at Le Grand Rex in Paris, Figueras developed a custom two-seater sofa with a folding central armrest. The seat can function as two individual places or as a shared double seat, with velvet and fabric upholstery selected to fit the room’s existing Boutique Cinema identity.

This is not the same product direction as an all-recliner multiplex. The auditorium itself has a distinct architectural and visual character, so the seating format becomes more specific: two seats, one flexible central division and upholstery developed around the room rather than around a generic VIP recliner aesthetic.

Recent French refurbishment work also shows that higher-comfort seating does not always mean adopting the same large electric recliner format. Dulac Cinémas’ 2026 renovations at Majestic Bastille and Majestic Passy focused on upgraded comfort while retaining the identity of the individual cinemas.