A new movie theater will make its debut in Chesapeake Square Friday.

The public will get its first opportunity to visit the new Cinemark theater at Chesapeake Square Mall when it opens Friday.

The 12-screen theater will replace the current Cinemark theater at the shopping center and features some of the latest movie theater technology.

Bryan Jeffries, marketing director for Cinemark, said it was crucial to have the theaters open in time for Christmas.

“All the best movies open over the holidays,” he said. “The timing is even better, because we got ‘Mission: Impossible,’ which won’t be in other theaters until next week.”

Jeffries said the theater got “Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol” early, because the location features an XD Extreme Digital Cinema theater.

The XD theater, which seats about 300 guests, is the largest in the facility and features a wall-to-wall, ceiling-to-floor screen, deluxe seating and a custom sound system.

Jeffries said JBL Sound fitted the auditorium with about 20 speakers to optimize the sound for guests.

He said XD is comparable to IMAX, but XD theaters feature digital projection, which means the theater can feature pretty much any movie and doesn’t have to follow a schedule.

“We can have two different movies play in the same day,” Jeffries said.

The Chesapeake location is the only Cinemark theater in Virginia to include an XD auditorium.

Although the XD theater is the crown jewel at the new Cinemark location, Jeffries said, the company tried to incorporate the same immersive experience throughout the facility, with wall-to-wall screens and enhanced sound.

“We try to make the movie experience as great in all 12 of the theaters,” Jeffries said.

In addition to the XD theater, the Chesapeake Square Cinemark also features a self-serve concessions stand.

Guests can choose their own drink size and pour it themselves, as well as pick up their own candy and popcorn.

Jeffries said employees will still be on duty to pop the popcorn and make other movie treats, but guests will handle everything else.

“Rather than stand there and explain how much ice you want, you can do it yourself,” he said.

Jeffries said features like the XD theater and the self-serve concession stand are part of Cinemark’s Next Gen theaters program.

“It’s what we think theaters are going to be,” he said.

The theater is part of an expansion of Chesapeake Square Mall that aims to revitalize the area to compete with nearby shopping and movie opportunities at Harbour View.

It is one of four Cinemark theaters in Virginia.

The new Cinemark theater at Chesapeake Square will have about 20 full-time employees and anywhere from 50 to 75 part-time employees, depending on the time of year, Jeffries said.