The founder and CEO of Vue Entertainment, the largest privately owned cinema operator in Europe, has written a public letter attacking the controversial deal IMAX signed with Netflix giving Greta Gerwig’s upcoming “ Narnia ” an exclusive two-week theatrical run on its screens.

While the deal, first announced in January, led to reports of significant discontent from within the exhibition industry, the letter from Tim Richards — shared exclusively with Variety — marks the first time it’s been expressed formally.

In the letter, Richards asserts that both audiences and the industry itself will “lose” out from the deal and warns that IMAX CEO Richard Gelfond’s claims that he’s looking to secure further exclusivity arrangements will be even more damaging.

“It risks undermining the ver

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