A major new entertainment destination is coming to Forney: EVO Entertainment has broken ground on an 82,000-square-foot venue that will bring movies, dining, bowling, and games to the fast-growing North Texas city.

According to a release, it's slated to open in fall 2026 in the burgeoning The Village at Gateway development.

The new EVO Entertainment Forney will feature so many attractions, it calls for a bulleted list:

• nine theaters, including one IMAX auditorium and two EVX auditoriums
• a full-service bar and restaurant
• an upper-level lounge area
• event and conference spaces
• 22 bowling lanes
• 125+ arcade games
• rock climbing walls
• a multi-level ropes course
• bumper cars
• laser tag

A January 20 groundbreaking event brought together community leaders, development partners, and local stakeholders to turn the first dirt.

“In Forney, we talk a lot about ‘Forney Family,’ and that spirit truly matters here,” said Forney City Council member Zahnd Schlensker in a statement. “EVO embodies that same sense of family ... This project is about honoring the past while creating a place where new memories will be made for generations to come.”

EVO Entertainment has a connection to Forney: Company CEO Mitchell Roberts' grandfather Lee Roy Mitchell was founder and former chairman of the board of Cinemark and a Forney native who, the release says, "helped shape the modern cinema industry —making EVO’s return to the city a meaningful full-circle moment."

Forney is a fast-growing city in Kaufman County, about 21 miles east of Dallas. It will soon be home to North Texas' newest H-E-B supermarket.

Forney's Kaufman County neighbor of Crandall had the second-hottest U.S. ZIP code for movers at the end of 2025.

The area is one of North Texas' biggest "boomtowns."