The Last Blockbuster on the Planet Is Now an Airbnb

The old "make it a Blockbuster night" slogan just got kicked up a notch. If you ever dreamed of spending a night in a Blockbuster video store, stuffing your face with candy and making a small fortress of VHS boxes with Bruce Willis's face on them, that very specific fantasy can now become a reality: The last Blockbuster store in world is now available to rent on Airbnb. Presumably, no late fees will be involved. 

According to a new post on Airbnb, the Blockbuster location in Bend, Oregon, widely known as the last standing Blockbuster in the world, will be opening its doors to "three, one-night stays that will take place on 9/18, 9/19, and 9/20 for up to four people." (Unsurprisingly, the spots are already taken -- gotta be fast!) The listing indicates that a sofa bed and an air mattress will be provided, so you don't have to turn one of those big shelves into a makeshift bed. 

If you thought Blockbuster, a once-mighty symbol of chain-store dominance ultimately undone by the rise of streaming, went out of business a long time ago, you're more or less correct. After a remaining location in Alaska and another in Australia shut their doors, the one in Oregon, which has stayed open through the pandemic by doing curbside pick-up, became the last Blockbuster standing. The Airbnb announcement could be the next step in the store's survival narrative, a transition to a bed-and-popcorn-for-breakfast model. 

As the story of the listing started to spread online, the official Blockbuster Twitter account, which hadn't posted since 2014, even peaked its head up.

The official listing leans on the '90s nostalgia angle pretty hard and the available photos display a comfy living room setup. "Whether you want to stay up until sunrise or pass out on the couch, we’ve created the perfect space complete with a pull-out couch, bean bags and pillows for you to cozy up with 'new releases' from the '90s," reads the post. "Crack open a two-liter of Pepsi before locking into a video game, charting your future in a game of MASH, or watching movie after movie." 

It's unclear if the Blockbuster will offer additional nights in the future. In an interview with CNN, the store's manager indicated that this was more of a 20th year celebration than a new way of doing business. Getting trapped in a Blockbuster might sound like a horror movie premise, but apparently some people just can't get enough of those bright lights and that logo.

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