New Films Will Be The Only Reason AMC Theatres Reopens
Because close quarters are often where the coronavirus spreads the quickest, movie theaters have had to close down to stem the spread. Now that the government is seeking to reopen them, AMC Theatres says they will only do so once film studios release new films.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the company said they would only reopen their hundreds of theatres around the United States if they have new products to showcase. This comment from the company follows the statement released by the National Association of Theatre Owners that moviehouses won’t be rushing to reopen even if state governments give them permission to do it.
Vanity Fair says that if AMC Theatres stick to their statement, the soonest they may open would be in the latter half of July, which is when two big movies are opening. On July 17, Warner Bros. will be releasing the Christopher Nolan film “Tenet.” Disney will release “Mulan” on July 29.
Should both studios keep these release dates for “Tenet” and “Mulan,” AMC Theatres said they would be using previously released films to come up with programming that viewers will find creative.
If moviehouses do begin to open in July, it would begin the process of recouping losses incurred from lockdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic. In the month of March, the North American box office suffered a $600 million deficit due to closed moviehouses. The global film industry is also set to lose $5 billion due to the closure of moviehouses in large markets like South Korea and Japan.
While the film industry reels from the effects of the pandemic, streaming services have enjoyed a temporary lift to their subscribers. Streaming giant Netflix enjoyed a 16 million increase to their subscribers because of the pandemic, bringing their total to 187 million paid subscribers. Disney+ has also seen its subscribers ballon to 50 million.
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 continue to rise around the world, so the outlook for people willing to return to moviehouses even if they do reopen is bleak. The World Health Organization says in it Apr. 26 situation report that there are now 2,804,797 confirmed COVID-19 cases globally, with 193,710 people dead. Of the confirmed cases, 84,900 are new cases, while new deaths are at 6,006.
In the United States, the Apr. 25 update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention puts the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at 928,619 people. There are now 52,459 people in the United States who have died from COVID-19.