Orange County

Biggest Theater Complex in U.S.: Irvine Co., Orange County’s largest landowner, is set to begin construction this week on what is expected to be America’s largest movie theater complex: a 135,000-square-foot, 21-screen Edwards Cinemas in Irvine. The complex at the “El Toro Y,” where the Santa Ana and San Diego freeways meet, is the first phase of a new entertainment center under construction by Irvine Co. The complex will seat 5,800 people, with four of the theaters big enough for 500 people and screens the height of a three-story building. While other theater complexes in the nation may have more than 21 screens, they are not as large as this one, according to the National Assn. of Theatre Owners in North Hollywood.