Movie Theater Owners Warn Against Reopening Too Soon

It's been a full month since new movies were released in theaters as the nation remains in [...]

By Spencer Perry

It's been a full month since new movies were released in theaters as the nation remains in lockdown due to the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus. Major theater chains have furloughed over 95% of their staff in the weeks since and movie studios have delayed their planned releases as much as a year in order to see the biggest return on their blockbuster investments. Some saw a glimmer of hope yesterday when the governor of the state of Georgia announced his intention to allow movie theaters to reopen on Monday, April 27. In a new statement though, the National Association of Theatre Owners warned against theaters opening too early and cautioned moviegoers that even if theaters are allowed to open they might not do it.

"While some states and localities are beginning to authorize the opening of movie theaters under certain conditions, the movie theater industry is also a national one," NATO said. "Until the majority of markets in the U.S. are open, and major markets in particular, new wide release movies are unlikely to be available. As a result, some theaters in some areas that are authorized to open may be able economically to reopen with repertory product; however, many theaters will not be able to feasibly open."

Even though movie theaters in Georgia will be allowed to re-open in one week, they will have to adhere to stricter health and safety standards in order to operate. Governor Brian Kemp outlined a plan for these business to open provided they comply with "specific social distancing and sanitation mandates." How customers and workers will be able to go about the traditional means of buying tickets, purchasing food, or sitting in a theater with strangers remains to be seen with regard to the mandated social distancing.

At this point it is unclear how many movie theaters will in fact re-open after the Governor's announcement, with AMC Theaters confirming just in mid-march that their establishments would remain closed for 6 to 12 weeks. In the time since the spread of the virus, and its effects on the economy, has grown significantly, so any major chains could be in for a bad time if they do decide to re-open.

Other countries attempted to re-open movie theaters after it seemed the spread of the coronavirus had gotten under control. Theaters in China reportedly began to re-open for business on March 23 but just four days later the Chinese government ordered them closed once again, they have not re-opened since.

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