It has been three months since movie theatres across the county shut down in response to the coronavirus, but they may finally re-open just in time for Christopher Nolan’s TENET. The National Association of Theatre Owners reportedly plans to re-open 90% of the nation’s movie theatres by July 17th, TENET’s official release date.
Cinemark, one of the nation’s top movie theatre chains, announced their plan to open their theatres again with specific social distancing rules. These include employees wearing masks, theatres providing hand sanitizer, and more frequent and careful cleanings of theatres. Although, they won’t require patrons to wear masks in theatres.
Individual theatres in Arizona and Ohio will open as early as Wednesday, June 10th. While other cinemas will be permitted to operate starting this week, some intend to remain closed until further notice.
Out of all the films that were planned for this year, TENET is among the few that kept their original release date. With the film still scheduled to screen in July, anticipated blockbusters like Mulan and Wonder Woman 1984 should be released as planned later this Summer.
To entice moviegoers, theatres plan to screen classic movies for a measly $5 a ticket. They even plan to sell popcorn at a cheap, if not zero, price. However, this may not be enough for theatres to stay in business.
Many major theatre companies are relying on the success of TENET to regain enough revenue to stay in business after having shut down for so long. AMC has even teetered on the brink of bankruptcy during the pandemic, as it has had virtually zero profits, and all 54 locations in California are at risk of closing.
The entire film industry is looking to TENET as the ark that will keep theatres alive. While this one film might not be enough, it will still introduce the lineup of blockbusters coming later this season. TENET should also help people regain a sense of what life was like before the pandemic.
In the meantime, you can still watch movies at home or a local drive-in.
