AMC Theaters Unlikely to Survive the Movie Theater Shut Down

[ranger_scout]

This will definitely help and maybe this will guarantee Wonder Woman 1984 making it to the big screen.

https://variety.com/2020/film/news/a...yc-1234808492/

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by ranger_scout

This will definitely help and maybe this will guarantee Wonder Woman 1984 making it to the big screen.

https://variety.com/2020/film/news/a...yc-1234808492/

Good to see, but that's not really a big deal. Basically some theaters in New York can reopen at 25% capacity... but not IN New York City. And without the support of studios, who are holding back all of their movies for years, why even bother reopening at all? What's the incentive?

[CyberCubed]

It's only a matter of time until we hear Wonder Woman is delayed till April/May of next year.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by CyberCubed

It's only a matter of time until we hear Wonder Woman is delayed till April/May of next year.

Probably April/May of 2022. Stay safe, everybody!

[Wildcat]

That’s not fair. Besides the virus they want the movies to do well. We’ve been through this. Makes no sense for studios to release their big titles when significantly less people are going to theaters...for whatever reason.

Serious question. You really want movies to be released when theaters are closed or don’t have enough customers? No promotion or limited release will suddenly convince people to go.

We keep using GB3 as an example but it’s a good one. It might get delayed again or not but given the history it deserves the best chance. I’m sure it would have done fine in general but I want it to do well. JW Dominion too.

After being on/off over 20 years, cast issues and a reboot that divided everyone...you cannot seriously still have wanted it to be released in such crappy circumstances.

[Roseangelo]

The problem is that it's going to be a very long time before crowds return to theaters at pre-COVID levels. I think a studio would have to be willing to sit on a title for two years if they are determined to get those numbers.

And when you have superhero titles that part of a series with other movies waiting to come after, you are pushing back all of those, too.

Considering how little production is happening right now, the studios can't wait two years on everything that's in the can. So they're going to have to make compromises and sacrifices. I think they are probably still trying to be hopeful that things can start to move soon, but I think they'll have to admit to the longterm reality by the end of the year.

The governor of CA has F-ed over my county, pretty much guaranteeing that indoor activities like movies, dining, and gyms won't be allowed anytime in the near future.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by Roseangelo

The problem is that it's going to be a very long time before crowds return to theaters at pre-COVID levels. I think a studio would have to be willing to sit on a title for two years if they are determined to get those numbers.

My thing is, while I know a good portion will not... they need to be given the chance to see if a significant portion will. I guarantee at least half will.

The governor of CA has F-ed over my county, pretty much guaranteeing that indoor activities like movies, dining, and gyms won't be allowed anytime in the near future.

I hear nothing but terrible things about CA. Every day.

[CyberCubed]

Crazy to think after all this time the only movies that did get digital or theater releases instead of being delayed to next year were Bill and Ted, Mulan, and Tenet. That was it as far as I remember, everything else for the rest of the year was delayed till 2021.

As seen with those 3 movies, there's no reason to hold everything back.

[Leo656]

The "best" thing about Wonder Woman 1984 is that it was done and could have been released last year. WB got greedy and decided to hold it back, polish the CGI a little bit and figured they'd make more money in 2020.

Now, no matter WHAT Patty Jenkins says, they're eventually gonna have no choice but to shotgun it onto the internet "for free" and take a billion-dollar bath on the entire project. Which is probably going to mean no more DC films after "The Batman" for a very long time if ever, period. NOTHING that they haven't already started filming is ever coming out, end of story. $200-million comic book movies are done, finished, ancient history. At least for the next 10 years.

They got greedy on Wonder Woman and essentially killed the entire DC films division as a result of it. As a DC fan, that sucks. As someone who's hated WB and their hubris and their sh*tty business practices for years and years... HAH. Bet they wish THEY had a time-traveling phone booth.

[ranger_scout]

AMC and many other theater owners are of course "ecstatic" about the recent news. They are hoping that Manhattan will soon be re-openings as well.

https://deadline.com/2020/10/new-yor...on-1234599422/

https://deadline.com/2020/10/amc-ent...ay-1234599568/

AMC also has another strategy to make some money through private screenings.

https://ew.com/movies/amc-theater-rentals-99-dollars/

[AquaParade]

Originally Posted by Leo656

The "best" thing about Wonder Woman 1984 is that it was done and could have been released last year. WB got greedy and decided to hold it back, polish the CGI a little bit and figured they'd make more money in 2020.

Now, no matter WHAT Patty Jenkins says, they're eventually gonna have no choice but to shotgun it onto the internet "for free" and take a billion-dollar bath on the entire project. Which is probably going to mean no more DC films after "The Batman" for a very long time if ever, period. NOTHING that they haven't already started filming is ever coming out, end of story. $200-million comic book movies are done, finished, ancient history. At least for the next 10 years.

They got greedy on Wonder Woman and essentially killed the entire DC films division as a result of it. As a DC fan, that sucks. As someone who's hated WB and their hubris and their sh*tty business practices for years and years... HAH. Bet they wish THEY had a time-traveling phone booth.

This is a bold prediction. I don't think you're crazy for making it, but I would bet against it. Despite the effects of Covid on the movie industry, I still believe the giant movie studios will find a way to put these blockbusters into theaters, beyond "The Batman". I do agree to the extent that budgets will have to go down. And the incentive is already there with the absolute bank they made from Joker.

I really do feel like either of our predictions could turn out right, but this is how I'd hedge my bet.

[Leo656]

Well, we'll see. It's not like I'm ROOTING for that, goodness knows.

The money has to come from SOMEwhere, is all. So very often, entire movies (or franchises) get scrapped because some totally unrelated project by the same studio tanks. Movie projects get leveraged against the success or failure of other in-house projects ALL the time.

If you can't put your movie out in theaters, your movie can't make a profit because piracy is rampant. "Nobody" pays to watch movies online because "they don't have to, there's other ways". It sucks, but that's the reality. If theaters are all gone inside of the next two years... it's going to be a LONG time before movie studios figure out how to make money online. Especially given that HUGE chunks of the world don't even have broadband, a factor many people outright dismiss when cheerleading for an all-streaming future. Even a great deal of people who hypothetically would pay to watch movies on a streaming service simply wouldn't have a good way to do so because of where they live. These are going to be HUGE problems for movie studios to figure out, and they don't have a lot of time to figure out a solution. There's a very good chance that by the end of next year, movie theaters will be as dead as Toys R Us.

And if there's no profit incentive, then these movies simply won't get made.

I mean, they'll probably figure out how to to super-hero movies EVENTUALLY, but like I said, if theaters go away then I expect it to take about ten years for them to figure out how to do them and be profitable. In the 80s and 90s, you barely got any outside of Batman, and the reason was "They cost so much to make that we can't make anything back, it's just pointless." That's the exact reason there wasn't a Superman movie for almost 20 years. And that was in an era when there were a lot more theaters, and movies would play for up to a year instead of a month, and there weren't all these other ways you could watch a film. I mean, even NOW they haven't bothered with a Superman film for the same reason; "Too expensive, not enough guaranteed profit". Without theatrical release and box office receipts? Zero chance. Even if they had any idea what to do with the character, they would never make a movie unless they knew they could triple the budget in ticket sales, and they could never make that kind of movie cheap.

I mean, Joker was a financial success, sure, but you can't do EVERY movie like that. You can't do a Superman or X-Men movie like that. The one lesson "Superman IV" gave the world was, you can absolutely have your heart in the right place but if you can't back it up with lots and lots of money, it's better to just stay home and not bother even attempting.

Certain comic book films NEED to be a grand spectacle, and frankly, without box office receipts to carry them, I don't see how studios can manage to make those movies. It's going to take them a long time.

I always shoot conservative, that's why I said 10 years. But yeah, they'll find a way eventually, somehow. I just don't see it happening any sooner, IF theaters really do disappear. Where's the money gonna come from? Even they don't know. They've openly said, "Without theaters we can't make money."

But yeah, we'll see. I'm rooting for theaters to survive and this whole mess to be a distant memory come this time next year. But I doubt it very much.

[Andrew NDB]

Just checked showtimes and... holy sh**. All of the AMC theaters are back here. Like, all of them. Playing Tenet, The New Mutants, all that stuff.

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

Just checked showtimes and... holy sh**. All of the AMC theaters are back here. Like, all of them. Playing Tenet, The New Mutants, all that stuff.

Are there restrictions on the seats? All of the Filmstaden theatres are open over here but they still restrict how many tickets they sell.

[Andrew NDB]

Originally Posted by neatoman

Are there restrictions on the seats? All of the Filmstaden theatres are open over here but they still restrict how many tickets they sell.

Yeah, there's like 3 pages of restrictions when you go to Fandango and try to buy a ticket. Masks at all times unless you're eating or drinking, they clean the bathrooms every 30 minutes, they've installed new air filtration stuff, etc., etc..

[Leo656]

Scientists in the U.K. are admitting that a vaccine is most likely years away AND won't "kill" the virus. It's with us and it's going to come and go in waves like the flu. And just like the flu, most likely anyone who's alive is going to have a brush with it eventually, it's simply not avoidable. That's exactly what they said. It's "The New Flu". We'll be dealing with it every cold and flu season forever and ever, and just like the flu, getting a shot for it won't be a Magic Fix. We're just gonna have to deal with it from now on.

Alright, then, time to adopt a "Don't be stupid, but otherwise back to normal" approach. No more lockdowns/shutdowns/mass hysteria. If it's inevitable that, like the flu, this is a permanent part of life and that, like the flu, people are going to die from it no matter WHAT we do or don't do, then let's get back to Business As Usual.

Wash your hands all the time because Don't Be A Slob. Don't cough on people. Basic hygiene that should have always been standard and taught and adopted since f*cking preschool, absolutely. Sucks that it takes "You might die/kill someone" to get people to not be disgusting slobs, but whatever it takes. Wear a mask if it makes you feel safe and pretend those viral microbes can't easily slip through the weaves of that fabric anytime they want. Basic caution and hygiene standards, just like when it's flu season. Sure.

Otherwise, Open Up. Bad enough some industries are dead and buried and most jobs are never coming back. We have to stop the bleeding. "This isn't ever going away" means no more mass hysteria, period. Nobody wants it, but we're all gonna get it at some point. No sense hiding under the bed from it. When it's your turn, it's Your Turn. Just be safe. But enough is enough.

[AquaParade]

Yeah, there have been certain silver linings in relation to hygiene.
Now, I don't eat a ton of fast food, and it's not because I have high standards of taste, but because I generally don't trust the people at a fast food place to give two ***** about following hygiene procedure. Now that they have to actually clamp down on some of that ****, I've actually been popping by some drive-thru's again.

I don't know, I'm not a hygiene freak by any means, but I notice when people cover their cough with the very hand they plan on using to shake, open doors, touch people and things, etc. So little things like that should finally be deemed unacceptable. Little errors in basic hygiene that have gotten away from us.

Seriously, why cover a cough with your hand, unless you can immediately wash it?? Are you four years old? Use your shirt, savage.

In regards to opening things back up, it's necessary at this point. I generally agree with Leo's point, and, at least around here, despite everything being either closed or forced to operate outdoors, social gatherings have not disappeared at all. People are getting together whether or not they do it in your restaurant or movie theater. There's no point in letting these business burn just so you can pretend you're making a difference.

[CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy]

Whatever happened to swine flu and bird flu? We freaked out about those for awhile, but they went away. If not actually went away, disappeared from public mind...

I guess because they didn't happen during an election year?

[Leo656]

I'm not a fanatic but I do wash my hands and face rather often. I take a full shower every day. When I'm cooking, I wash my hands whenever I wash anything else, like rinsing a spoon or whatever. Hands are gonna get wet anyway, may as well wash 'em. When I was at work, if it was cold/flu season I'd wash my hands as soon as possible after having any close contact with anyone, definitely after a handshake. And I'd avoid shaking hands as much as possible in the winter months, although in some cases it's unavoidable.

In spite of my best efforts... for most of my life, I got VERY sick about once every month or so. I'd take every single reasonable precaution possible and then some, but I'd often joke that I'd get sick from a stiff breeze. There were times when someone around me "just" had a cough, and from there I'd be knocked out for two weeks with infected sinuses, coughing up blood and sh*t. Other times, I'd be training a client who came in sick and we'd be in close quarters for an hour or so and I'd be SURE that I was gonna be f*cked, but nothing happened and I was perfectly fine.

This is how I developed the mentality of, "It's really not up to you." I spent half my life being sick. I know for a FACT that you can take every precaution and get sick anyways, OR take no precautions and somehow like magic have it avoid you completely. Common sense is common sense, but as to whether or not you actually get sick, or get anyone else sick? That is 100% on "God". "Will of the Fates". Call it whatever. But it's ultimately not up to You.

When I'd call out sick, because "I don't want to get worse or spread it to other people", or to try and avoid getting sick from other people if I wasn't already, it was always the same line: "You can't live like that, life doesn't work that way." And they're right. People are always gonna get sick, and yeah, sometimes they're sadly even gonna die. These things are entirely outside of anyone's control, and aside from very basic common sense attempts to stay safe there's nothing anyone can do about any of it, and therefore no reason to overreact or live in crippling fear.

A year ago, if you said "I'm gonna walk around in a space suit and avoid all contact with people because I don't want to catch the flu, it might kill me (or my grandma)," people would laugh and call you an imbecile and tell you that you're a big 'fraidy cat and that's no way to go through life. Very little has ultimately changed other than a great big fear of "the unknown". But the unknown isn't entirely unknown anymore, so... time to try and make the best of it, I figure.

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

Whatever happened to swine flu and bird flu? We freaked out about those for awhile, but they went away. If not actually went away, disappeared from public mind...

I guess because they didn't happen during an election year?

Case in point. Depending on who you believe, more people died from Swine Flu. And nothing at all was shut down, there was just a month or so where SOME (not even most) people wore masks. And the ones who did were mostly made fun of over it. Otherwise, "business as usual". "Off to work now; hope I don't get sick and die, but if I do... ah well."

It's so weird how much can change in ten years. People were absolutely dropping dead back then, too, and the general attitude was a great big "So What?" And then it all just went away.

[sdp]

Originally Posted by Andrew NDB

Just checked showtimes and... holy sh**. All of the AMC theaters are back here. Like, all of them. Playing Tenet, The New Mutants, all that stuff.

Vote with your wallet then and show them you want movies by going.

Originally Posted by CylonsKlingonsDaleksOhMy

Whatever happened to swine flu and bird flu? We freaked out about those for awhile, but they went away. If not actually went away, disappeared from public mind...

I guess because they didn't happen during an election year?

The US isn't the whole world FYI.