After more than 31 years of showing movies, the movie theater in Marion, Illinois has closed.

Located west of downtown Marion on the west side of I-57 along West Deyoung Street, the AMC Classic Illinois Centre 8 showed its last movies on Thursday, August 7, 2025. The AMC website displays a message that reads:

AMC CLASSIC Illinois Centre 8 Has Permanently Closed

We hope to see you at our next nearest location: AMC University Place 8

This was the last movie theater in Marion, which is about 90 miles southeast of St. Louis, Missouri. 

Theater History

The movie theater was originally opened by Kerasotes ShowPlace Theatres, LLC. in December 1993 as the Kerasotes Illinois Centre. It became the AMC Centre 8 when AMC acquired it in 2010. It was renamed the AMC Classic Illinois Centre 8 in April 2017.

The AMC Classic brand is a designation that the company has applied to many of its older theaters and those included in its purchase of Carmike Cinemas in 2016.

The shutdowns of movie theaters nationwide during the pandemic caused many theaters to be closed permanently and theater chains have been struggling to regain their footing. The resulting effect has been that locations that did reopen are scrutinized for their performance, and those that have insufficient revenue, cost too much to operate, need upgrades not justified by ticket sales, or other issues, have been shuttered.

We don't know it that's the case here, or if it's a matter of a lease not being renewed, or a host of other reasons, but it's a reminder to us all that if we want to have our local movie theaters open, we need to support them!

Where to Watch Movies on the Big Screen

Moviegoers in the area will need to visit one of the other nearby theaters, including the AMC University Place 8, the VIP Carbondale, and the Varsity Center. All are more than ten miles away in Carbondale.

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