California Theater Reopens After Closure Due To Joker Movie Threat

Joker opening weekend was bound to be eventful after all the media attention the film had generated prior to release. One movie theater in California is getting back to normal and showing the film after a scary situation caused the venue to be shut down on Thursday evening. The Cinemark Century Huntington Beach and XD cineplex received word of a “credible threat” surrounding the film and closed just to be safe. Deadline is reporting that Friday became a return to normalcy as they deemed it safe to open the doors again.

Huntington Beach police got sent tot he theater around 5 p.m Thursday after receiving the threat, according to the Los Angeles Times. All of the showings located at the theater located at the Bella Terra shopping center on Edinger Street were shut down after 4:45 p.m. Some of the people expecting to see the film were undoubtedly disappointed that things went sideways because of forces beyond their control.

This all comes a day after the New York City Fire Department issued a memo to address the film. The note stressed extra vigilance heading into the release weekend as threats could pop up in response to Joker. Security had to be increased at the film’s premiere in Los Angeles as well. So, there has been no shortage of controversy heading into the beginning of October.

Critics have not been kind to the film, and that has been reflected in the scores across various aggregators on the Internet. All of that buzz coming out of Venice seems like an eternity ago. But, the company and filmmakers can take solace in the fact that the fans seem to be enjoying the film. In fact, the audience score for Joker was at a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes this morning when compared to the 69% critical score. The people are loving it, and the negative critic response might not matter in the end.

More dust-ups could come over the weekend as audiences spend more time with the film. But, so far so good for a film that drew a ton of negative attention heading into an opening. Todd Phillips couldn’t help commenting on the controversy at every turn. The director defended his right to make certain artistic decisions as it related to violence on screen, and some didn’t take too kindly to all of those comments. He’s remained strident that the choices are justified. Whatever the case, people are certainly talking about it.

Joker is now in theaters. Upcoming DC Movies include Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) on February 7, 2020, Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5, 2020, The Batman on June 25, 2021, The Suicide Squad on August 6, 2021, and Aquaman 2 on December 16, 2022.