Saudi Arabia's first public movie screening to take place in May

The private screening of the first movie in Saudi Arabia will take place on Wednesday at the newly built cinema complex in Riyadh’s King Abdullah Financial District, Arab News reported on Monday.

The screening will be part of a series of invitation-only shows, and follows the collaboration between the Saudi Development and Investment Entertainment Company and US-based AMC Entertainment.

Cinemas will open their doors to the public in May, with tickets expected to go on sale online this month.

Three screens will open in the Q3 2018, while more than 40 cinema complexes are likely to be built over the next five years.

Earlier this month, the Saudi Ministry of Culture and Information, the sector's regulator, granted the first cinema operation license to a joint venture of Public Investment Fund and AMC.

With a population of over 32 million, Saudi Arabia can become the largest market for movie-goers in the GCC region, it said.