Mooky Greidinger

Greidinger is a third-generation member of a cinema family rooted in Haifa. His grandfather, also named Moshe, immigrated from Romania and invested in Haifa's Ein Dor cinema around 1930, later opening the Armon cinema in 1935.[1] Beyond cinema, the elder Moshe had business interests in food, shipping, and real estate. After his death in 1946, his son Kalman expanded the family's cinema holdings by acquiring the Chen cinema in Tel Aviv, which became the flagship of what grew into the Rav Chen chain.[1]

The family also built a parallel film distribution business. Forum Film signed a Disney distribution deal in 1967, and Mooky Greidinger joined the family business in 1976.[2] In 1982, he renovated the Tel Aviv Hen cinema, converting it into what Calcalist described as Israel's first multiplex, Rav Hen.[2] Forum Film went on to hold exclusive Israeli distribution rights for films from Sony, 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney, and Paramount.[4]

In 1997, Greidinger moved to expand the family's operations beyond Israel, establishing cinema operations in Eastern Europe beginning in Hungary.[4] The Greidingers established Cinema City International N.V., opening their first overseas venue in Budapest and subsequently expanding into Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Bulgaria.[1] By the company's December 2006 IPO on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, it operated multiplexes across all of those markets.[1] The family also launched the YES Planet chain inside Israel beginning in 2006.[5]

In January 2014, Cinema City International merged with the UK operator Cineworld Group PLC. Globes placed the combined enterprise value at £503 million, and the Greidingers took senior management roles alongside a significant ownership stake in the enlarged company.[1] Greidinger became Cineworld's CEO following the transaction.[2]

Under Greidinger's leadership, Cineworld pursued an aggressive acquisition strategy. In 2017, the company announced a $3.6 billion acquisition of the US chain Regal; once completed, the deal gave Cineworld more than 9,500 screens across ten countries and established it as the world's second-largest cinema operator.[2][4] Greidinger also pursued the acquisition of Canada's Cineplex in a planned $1.65 billion deal, but Cineworld walked away from that transaction in 2020 after the COVID-19 outbreak, triggering legal disputes between the two companies.[4]

A flagship moment in Greidinger's Israeli operations came with the 2015 opening of YES Planet Jerusalem, built in a little over a year at a cost of approximately NIS 200 million. The complex featured 16 screens across six stories, covering 28,500 square meters, and included IMAX screens, VIP options, stadium seating, and a multi-story garage with 350 spaces.[6] At the opening, Greidinger remarked that cinema is "not just about what movies we see, but how we see them."[6]

The COVID-19 pandemic inflicted severe damage on Cineworld's finances. During a June 2022 court hearing, Greidinger described the company's trajectory: "We were an unprecedented success story. I don't think there are many Israeli companies that reached a status similar to the world's second largest cinema chain. But two-and-a-half years ago our life's work collapsed."[4] He told the court that the company's debt had grown substantially and its share price had fallen by 93 percent.[4]

Cineworld entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the United States.[4] After the restructuring, Greidinger and his brother Israel left the company and new management took over. Ynet News reported that the US bankruptcy process did not affect the operations of the Planet cinema chain in Israel.[3]

Greidinger's impact on cinema exhibition lay in combining international scale with investment in the in-person moviegoing experience. The Regal acquisition gave Cineworld more than 9,500 screens in ten countries and made it the world's second-largest cinema chain.[4] He argued that theaters compete for leisure time outside the home rather than simply against home video or streaming. Responding to concerns about DVD competition, he said: "Cinema is not a warship but rather an aircraft carrier — it doesn't change direction very quickly or very easily."[1] He also emphasized that laughing with 150 or 200 people creates a different experience from watching nearly alone at home.[1]

Greidinger's business career generated several notable disputes. The 2015 opening of YES Planet Jerusalem attracted controversy because the venue was planned to operate on Shabbat — unlike its rival, Cinema City, which remained closed on Saturdays. Cinema City's owners argued the arrangement constituted unfair competition. The Israeli Supreme Court ruled that Cinema City would remain closed on Shabbat for the time being and directed the municipality to renegotiate its contract.[5] Greidinger defended the decision by stating that the venue was built on privately owned land, was not situated near ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods, and that "Showing movies on Shabbat is completely legal."[6] No protests from ultra-Orthodox groups were reported at the venue's opening.[6]

In 2022, Cineworld removed the film The Lady of Heaven from its UK locations following protests outside theaters over the film's depictions of Islamic sacred figures. Cineworld stated the decision was made "to ensure the safety of our staff and customers."[7] The film's executive producer argued that cinemas should defend their right to show films.[7]

Greidinger also faced legal proceedings in Israel related to Forum Film's distribution practices. In 2020, Israel's Competition Authority indicted Greidinger and Forum Film, alleging that the company had systematically refused during 2015–2019 to supply films — particularly children's films — to the Lev Tel Aviv cinema, in violation of a condition attached to a 2010 merger approval.[2] Forum Film disputed the allegations, maintaining that it had supplied and continued to supply films to Lev and that the authority's claims concerned a negligible number of titles.[2] In 2022, Greidinger and Forum Film were convicted under a plea agreement. The court imposed a six-month suspended jail term and a total fine of NIS 750,000, of which Greidinger was personally responsible for NIS 100,000 and Forum Film for NIS 650,000.[4]