This post was originally published on here
Sights and sounds at the Cosm VIP Grand Opening event
Sights and sounds at the Cosm VIP Grand Opening event on Sept. 6, 2026 in Detroit.
DETROIT — A new premium, immersive theater promising field-level shots of live sports games and interactive movie showings for fands ranging from Potterheads to Matrix lovers welcomed its first public attendees Thursday in downtown Detroit.
Cosm, at 25 Cadillac Square, anchors billionaire Dan Gilbert’s Bedrock development next to Campus Martius Park and is the fourth location to open after Los Angeles, Dallas and Atlanta.
Even as movie theaters struggle to remain profitable with the rise of streaming platforms, devoted sports and movie fandoms still seek shared viewings with their tribes, said Cosm President and CEO Jeb Terry Jr. The chain targets those drawn to supersized experiences such as Imax — which is getting renewed attention following the release of “The Odyssey” — and Las Vegas’ The Sphere, but also to sports fans unable to travel for away games such as the Rose Bowl and the FIFA World Cup.
“The premium experiences: those are the things that we’ve seen fans want to go and experience,” Terry said. “What we like to do is go out and say, ‘OK, if you’re a fan of Harry Potter, we want to be able to be the best place to do that.'”
“We’ve seen fans really love the format,” he added.
Terry said support from Gilbert and the dedication and scope of local sports fans drew him to Detroit. Cosm has received no public funding, Terry said, and so far hired 300 workers for its Detroit location.
“What we’ve been doing in L.A., Dallas and Atlanta really gives us the confidence that fans want more of this,” he told reporters as hyper-realistic video of a fall day at Greenfield Village played behind him on Cosm’s domed, larger-than-life main screen.
Terry, a former guard for the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, said his goal is to replicate the feeling of running from players’ tunnels onto football fields with packed stadiums of roaring fans.
“As a former athlete, you chase that feeling coming out of the tunnel; there’s nothing like it,” Terry said. “And this was as close as I ever felt to it.”
Movie offerings so far this year include “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” “It,” “The Matrix” and the original “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.” Fans often come in costume to showings, which feature special food and drink to match movies.
Potterheads can watch the series’ first movie while sipping butterbeer — a rich, warming drink described in millennials’ beloved books as almost unbelievably delicious — then watch themselves soar on broomsticks on one of dozens of side screens throughout the theater.
“Matrix” fans can pose in full pleather outfits (and Cosm marketers say they do) in a replica phone booth like the one used in the movie to transport people in and out of the Matrix. When main character Neo is offered fresh cookies in a pivotal scene, guests are served cookies, too.
The first public showing at Cosm wa Thursday night’s NFL matchup between the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams.
