Moviegoers who prefer staying in Sunnyside for their viewing needs have one theater location to choose from as of winter 2011: Grand Cinemas Yakima Valley, which offers 12 screens of first-run movies, Dolby digital sound, 3D technolgy and stadium seating. Other theater options can be found in the relatively close communities of Yakima, Ellensburg and the Tri-Cities, all less than an hour's drive from Sunnyside.
The nearest option outside of Sunnyside is about 20 minutes northwest to Yakima, where film fans wiill find three modern multiplex-style theaters and one drive-in. These standard theaters include the Majestic, just north of the Valley Mall; Yakima Cinema, near the freeway; and Uptown Plaza, located downtown. Yakima Country Drive-in, located in the Nob Hill area outside of town, is open seasonally.
Ellensburg, a community know for agriculture and ranching, and the home of one of the state's land-grand universities, is about 40 minutes northwest of Sunnyside. As of winter 2011, it offers one movie theater, Grand Meridian Cinema, which has nine screens, stadium seating and a small video arcade.
The communities of Pasco, Kennewick and Richland comprise the Tri-Cities region about an hour east of Sunnyside. As of winter 2011, there are four theaters: Columbia Mall Stadium 8 and Carmike 12, both in Kennewick; Fairchild Cinemas in Pasco; and Uptown Triplex in Richland.