Anyone who’s spent a Friday night at Causeway Point knows the routine — park the car, grab dinner upstairs, then head downstairs for a movie before heading home. That routine stopped working for Woodlands moviegoers in September 2025 when Cathay Cineplexes shut its doors at the shopping mall. Seven months later, SAS Cineplex moved into the same space, and the screens are back on.

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Original Operator: Cathay Cineplexes · Location: Causeway Point, 1 Woodlands Square · Number of Screens: 7 · Status: Closed, replaced by SAS Cineplex · Replacement Launch: SAS Cineplex now operating

Quick snapshot

1Cathay Era
2Current Status
  • Closed in September 2025
  • SAS Cineplex opened February 2026
  • Same location, 1 Woodlands Square
3Visitor Info
  • 1 Woodlands Square, Causeway Point
  • Ticket booking via apps
  • Showtimes available online
4Why It Matters
  • Second major Singapore cinema chain collapse
  • Parent company cited streaming competition, Covid losses
  • FCT mall occupancy bounced to 99.9% after replacement

The table below summarizes the key operational details at Causeway Point across both operators.

Detail Value
Address 1 Woodlands Square, Causeway Point
Screens 7
Previous Operator Cathay Cineplexes (1999–2025)
Current Operator SAS Cineplex
Formats Digital 2D & 3D

Is Cathay Causeway Point closed?

Yes. Cathay Cineplexes entered voluntary liquidation on September 1, 2025, and the Causeway Point outlet closed that same day along with three other locations — Century Square, Downtown East, and Clementi. The chain had been shrinking for years before that final collapse. According to The Business Times (Singapore business publication), Cathay received letters of demand for S$2.7 million from its Causeway Point and Century Square landlords on January 28, 2025, as unpaid rent stacked up.

Closure timeline

The decline was gradual. Cathay closed its Handy Road location — the iconic one that gave the chain its name — after June 26, 2022. Cineleisure Orchard and Parkway Parade shut in mid-2023. AMK Hub followed in June 2024. West Mall and Jem fell in February and March 2025 respectively. By the time liquidation came, six outlets had already closed over the preceding three years, according to Dr Wealth (financial analysis outlet). The final four closures on September 1, 2025, marked the end of the line.

Affected locations

Causeway Point was not alone. Century Square, Downtown East, and Clementi — all Cathay locations — closed on the same day. Each of those spaces has since been backfilled by a new operator. As Frasers Centrepoint Trust noted (mall REIT managing Causeway Point and Century Square), the spaces at both malls were taken up after Cathay entered liquidation.

Bottom line: Cathay Causeway Point closed September 1, 2025, as part of a chain-wide liquidation. The decline spanned three years and six outlet closures before the final shutdown.

What is the new cinema at Causeway Point?

SAS Cineplex is now operating at Causeway Point. According to Mothership (Singapore news outlet), the replacement was already up and running by February 2026 — just five months after Cathay cleared out. The FCT business update, published January 23, 2026, confirmed the replacement arrangement, and by the end of 2025, Causeway Point had returned to 100% occupancy alongside five other FCT malls.

SAS Cineplex takeover

SAS Cineplex took over the Cathay space at Causeway Point. This operator brings a different programming focus — community discussion on HardwareZone Forums (Singapore tech community) noted the venue offers screenings of Bollywood films, a niche that Cathay had not prioritised. According to Mothership, this Bollywood programming sets SAS apart from the Golden Village replacement at Century Square, which focuses on mainstream Hollywood and Asian releases.

Launch details

The exact opening date is not publicly confirmed beyond “by February 2026.” What is clear is the speed of transition — mall owner Frasers Centrepoint Trust moved quickly to secure a replacement, and the occupancy bump tells the story: FCT reported 99.9% occupancy as of December 31, 2025, up from 98.1% the previous quarter. Six FCT malls — Causeway Point, Century Square, Nex, Waterway Point, Tampines 1, and White Sands — hit 100% occupancy by year-end.

Bottom line: SAS Cineplex opened at Causeway Point by February 2026, filling the gap within five months. The replacement focuses partly on Bollywood programming, differentiating it from the Golden Village takeover at Century Square.

Why did Cathay Cineplex close?

mm2 Asia, which owned Cathay Cineplexes after acquiring the chain in 2017, cited three interlocking pressures: high overhead costs, competition from streaming platforms, and an inability to fully recover from Covid-19 losses. As Time Out Singapore (entertainment publication) reported, Cathay owed landlords millions in unpaid rent. A statutory demand from FCT for over S$3.3 million arrived on July 15, 2025, and by July 17, mm2 Asia was already considering winding up the cinema business.

Business reasons

The bond extension proposal tells the financial story. On July 16, 2025, Cathay proposed extending S$54 million in bonds to December 31, 2031 — a move that signaled the chain was struggling to service existing debt. The Jem outlet alone had S$4.3 million in unpaid rent claims from its landlord. For comparison, West Mall’s closure on February 17, 2025, came after earlier disputes with the landlord there. The pattern was consistent: rents unpaid, landlords escalating, and no path to profitability against Netflix and Disney+.

Mall ownership impact

Singapore’s cinema market teaches a hard lesson about ownership structure. Dr Wealth (financial analysis outlet) framed it bluntly: Cathay was running the shop while landlords owned the mall. When cinema revenues fell, Cathay absorbed the losses while landlords still demanded rent. The landlords — notably FCT — were able to quickly backfill the spaces with new tenants and restore occupancy. Cathay absorbed the closure costs alone.

The trade-off

mm2 Asia’s decision to acquire Cathay in 2017 looked strategic when cinema footfall was higher. But without owning the underlying real estate, the chain had no cushion when streaming competition intensified and Covid hit. The lesson: in retail-heavy entertainment businesses, owning the venue matters as much as operating it.

Does Causeway Point have cinema?

Yes, SAS Cineplex is now operating at Causeway Point. The cinema reopened in the same space Cathay occupied for 26 years. According to Mothership, showtimes are available and ticket booking can be done through apps and the cinema’s website.

Current options

SAS Cineplex at Causeway Point offers standard digital 2D and 3D screenings, with a particular focus on Bollywood films — a programming choice that differentiates it from Golden Village at Century Square and Shaw Theatres across Singapore. For moviegoers in the Woodlands area, the closest alternatives remain Shaw Atrium in Admiralty and Golden Village at Jurong East, but neither is in the same mall.

Booking info

SAS Cineplex showtimes and tickets are available through the cinema’s own app and website. Because the operator is relatively new to the Singapore market, third-party aggregators like BookMyShow have limited coverage compared to more established chains. Checking the SAS Cineplex website directly remains the most reliable booking method for now.

Bottom line: Yes, Causeway Point has a cinema again. SAS Cineplex is operating with 7 screens, offering Bollywood-heavy programming compared to mainstream-focused competitors.

What will happen to the closed Cathay cinemas?

At Causeway Point, the space is filled. At Century Square, Golden Village moved in. At Downtown East and Clementi, the status of replacement operators is less publicly documented. What is clear is that the landlord-backed model has worked — FCT’s 99.9% occupancy figure proves spaces in well-located suburban malls do not stay vacant long.

Replacements

Causeway Point got SAS Cineplex. Century Square got Golden Village. Both replacements have restored cinema access to those malls and, critically for FCT, resolved the tenant vacancy. The other two closures — Downtown East and Clementi — are less documented in public filings, suggesting those landlords moved more quietly or the replacement arrangements are still being finalized.

Future plans

For Cathay Cineplexes itself, the chain is gone. mm2 Asia’s cinema business entered liquidation on September 1, 2025, and no restructuring plan for the brand has been publicly announced. The bonds — worth S$54 million — remain outstanding, and the parent company’s future plans for any remaining assets are not publicly disclosed. For moviegoers who remember Cathay from the Handy Road days, the brand’s revival seems unlikely in the near term.

The pattern shows landlords with prime locations recovered quickly, while lesser-positioned malls may face longer vacancy periods.

Why this matters

The FCT experience shows landlords can recover quickly from anchor tenant failures if mall locations are strong. But for tenants at less prime locations — Downtown East is further from MRT than Causeway Point — finding a replacement operator may take longer. The speed of backfill correlates directly with foot traffic and catchment area.

Timeline of events

A chain that started in 1939 as Singapore’s first air-conditioned cinema went through three years of retrenchment before liquidating in 2025. Cathay’s Causeway Point outlet alone operated for over 25 years before closing.

The chronological record below tracks key milestones from Cathay’s founding through SAS Cineplex’s takeover.

Date Event
1939 Cathay Cineplexes established as Singapore’s first air-conditioned cinema
September 1, 1999 Cathay took over 10 screens from Studio Cinema at Causeway Point
June 27, 2022 The Cathay Handy Road closed — the chain’s namesake location
June–June 2022 Cineleisure Orchard and Parkway Parade closed
June 2024 AMK Hub outlet closed
February 17, 2025 West Mall outlet closed
March 27, 2025 Jem outlet closed; landlord sought S$4.3 million in unpaid rent
July 15, 2025 FCT issued statutory demand for S$3.3 million
September 1, 2025 Cathay entered voluntary liquidation; Causeway Point, Century Square, Downtown East, Clementi closed
February 2026 SAS Cineplex operational at Causeway Point

What we know — and what we don’t

The confirmed facts below are supported by multiple sources; the gaps remain open questions for further reporting.

Confirmed facts

  • Cathay Causeway Point closed September 1, 2025
  • SAS Cineplex replaced Cathay at Causeway Point by December 2025
  • FCT occupancy rose to 99.9% by December 31, 2025
  • Golden Village took over Century Square from Cathay
  • mm2 Asia cited streaming competition and Covid losses

What’s unclear

  • Exact opening date of SAS Cineplex — only confirmed as “by February 2026”
  • Status of Downtown East and Clementi spaces post-closure
  • Current ticket prices at SAS Cineplex Causeway Point
  • Audience attendance figures since SAS opened
  • mm2 Asia’s final resolution on the S$54 million bond obligation

What people are saying

The spaces at Causeway Point and Century Square were taken up after their previous tenant, Cathay Cineplexes, entered liquidation.

— Frasers Centrepoint Trust manager (mall REIT managing Causeway Point and Century Square)

mm2 cites high overhead costs, competition from streaming platforms, and not being able to fully bounce back after the Covid-19 pandemic as some of the main reasons for its recent losses.

— mm2 Asia (parent company of Cathay Cineplexes)

The closure of the iconic cinema at Handy Road… is part of the cost rationalisation process for its cinema operations.

— mm2 Asia (media company statement, as reported by The Big Story)

Summary

Cathay Cineplexes’ exit from Causeway Point was not an isolated event — it was the final chapter of a three-year decline driven by streaming competition, unpaid rents, and a parent company unable to service S$54 million in bonds. For Woodlands moviegoers, the good news is the cinema reopened within months under SAS Cineplex, restoring a convenience that Cathay had provided for 26 years. The implication for other cinema operators is straightforward: without the real estate cushion that landlords enjoy, running a multi-screen chain in Singapore means living on thin margins where one bad year — or one pandemic — can trigger the collapse that befell Cathay. FCT bounced back to 99.9% occupancy. Cathay did not.

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Frequently asked questions

Is SAS Cineplex Causeway Point open?

Yes. SAS Cineplex is now operating at Causeway Point, 1 Woodlands Square. The cinema opened by February 2026 and is showing films including Bollywood releases.

How to check Causeway Point cinema showtimes?

Check the SAS Cineplex app or website directly for the most up-to-date showtimes. Third-party booking platforms may have limited coverage of this newer operator.

Why did Cathay Cineplex close?

mm2 Asia, Cathay’s parent company, cited three main reasons: high overhead costs, competition from streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney+, and an inability to recover fully from Covid-19 pandemic losses. The chain also owed landlords millions in unpaid rent before entering liquidation.

Where to book SAS Cineplex Causeway Point tickets?

Tickets for SAS Cineplex Causeway Point can be booked via the cinema’s own app or website. Walk-in purchases at the counter are also available during operating hours.

What happened to Cathay Cineplex screens?

Cathay’s seven screens at Causeway Point are now operated by SAS Cineplex. The space was backfilled quickly — SAS was operational by February 2026, roughly five months after Cathay’s September 2025 closure.

Is there parking at Causeway Point cinema?

Yes. Causeway Point has its own basement car park accessible from Woodlands Square. Parking charges apply and may vary depending on cinema ticket stub redemption policies.