Even as the global coronavirus pandemic continues to rage around the world, businesses are already working towards finding ways to operate in the new normal brought about by the pandemic. One of those businesses is AMC Theaters, which is reopening its theaters this week.
Variety reports that the theater chain is enforcing its social distancing measures as it reopens by automatically blocking out one seat on every side of every party who bought a ticket. Doing so ensures that there is enough space between patrons to avoid infecting others.
The clarification comes after a tweet from Twitter user @metaplexmovies mistakenly claimed that the theater chain is not enforcing social distancing rules as it reopens its theaters. The tweet came with two images that show adjacent seats being occupied.
AMC says that this was because the technology to automatically block the seats was not yet available last week. However, people who purchased tickets to an AMC theater will be mandated to practice social distancing once in the cinemas. This means that moviegoers may not end up in the seats they initially reserved.
This new ticketing system and enforced social distancing are just some of the health and safety measures the chain is enforcing as it moves towards reopening all of its theaters by September.
Engadget reports that other measures that AMC theaters will be enforcing include the mandatory wearing of masks for both customers and employees, enhanced cleaning and disinfection standards, as well as reducing how many people they allow in each theater.
Of course, AMC isn’t the only theater chain that is implementing health and safety measures as they reopen in the midst of a pandemic that is still ongoing in the United States. Regal theaters also have similar measures in place, which they revealed when they planned to reopen for Christopher Nolan’s Tenet.
The theater chain introduced a booking system to ensure social distancing and lowered theater capacity. Adjustments have also been made to movie schedules to ensure long lines are avoided. Procedures for sanitation and cleanliness have also been enhanced.
Movie theaters successfully reopening would mean a lot to the film and entertainment industry, which has suffered a huge economic blow since the start of the pandemic. A $5 billion loss is expected from the global film industry because of theater closures in huge markets like South Korea and Japan.
Whether movie theaters will ever be able to successfully reopen in the United States and around the world still remains to be seen. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pegs the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at 5,382,125 people. Deaths caused by COVID-19 are now at 169,350 people.
Around the world, there are now 21,549,706 confirmed COVID-19 cases, as per the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 dashboard. There are now 767,158 deaths caused by COVID-19.