Post by Neverending on Jul 12, 2020 15:33:08 GMT -5
Doomsday SnoBorderZero 1godzillafan PhantomKnight Wyldstaar PG Cooper donny
www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2020-07-11/movie-theaters-hollywood-reopening-new-films
Movie theaters face ‘existential’ threat from COVID-19: ‘Without new movies, it’s over’
www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2020-07-11/movie-theaters-hollywood-reopening-new-films
Movie theaters face ‘existential’ threat from COVID-19: ‘Without new movies, it’s over’
About 1,300 domestic movie houses are currently open, including 293 drive-ins, according to data firm Comscore. But the vast majority of the country’s nearly 5,550 indoor theaters remain shuttered, and the recent surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in multiple states has postponed what was already expected to be a slow recovery. While drive-ins are doing brisk business, indoor theaters are struggling to draw audiences because of a lack of new Hollywood films.
The sustained closures are taking a huge bite out of the theatrical movie business, effectively quashing the traditional summer box office season that normally accounts for 40% of annual ticket sales. Wedbush Securities estimates that the North American box office will total $4.4 billion in 2020, down 61% from last year. (In 2019, box office revenue was $11.4 billion, a 4% dip from the prior year.)
John Fithian, president and chief executive of the National Assn. of Theatre Owners (NATO), said his organization has been encouraging the studios to start releasing their big movies next month, though some U.S. states and localities, including Los Angeles and New York, remain in a state of uncertainty.
The “vast majority” of global markets will be open in time for the current release dates for Hollywood movies, he said. Other countries, he noted, have been more effective than the U.S. in controlling the virus, and for a movie like “Tenet,” two-thirds of the box office is expected to be international.
Furthermore, if studios don’t start releasing new movies soon, it could do lasting damage to the industry, he said.
“If the answer is, ‘We’re going to wait until 100% of theaters are open, we’re not going to be there until a year from now when there’s a vaccine,” Fithian said. “This is existential for the movie theater industry. If we go a year without new movies, it’s over.”
The “vast majority” of global markets will be open in time for the current release dates for Hollywood movies, he said. Other countries, he noted, have been more effective than the U.S. in controlling the virus, and for a movie like “Tenet,” two-thirds of the box office is expected to be international.
Furthermore, if studios don’t start releasing new movies soon, it could do lasting damage to the industry, he said.
“If the answer is, ‘We’re going to wait until 100% of theaters are open, we’re not going to be there until a year from now when there’s a vaccine,” Fithian said. “This is existential for the movie theater industry. If we go a year without new movies, it’s over.”
For the theaters, reopening can’t come soon enough. The largest chains — AMC Theatres and Regal Cinemas — remain shuttered. Plano, Texas-based Cinemark opened a handful of theaters in the Dallas-Fort Worth area but will not open most of its 345-theater U.S. circuit until July 24.
Some smaller chains that tried to open early by showing recent releases, like the Vin Diesel action thriller “Bloodshot” and nostalgic classics including “Jaws,” have struggled to make ends meet with those titles. What’s worse, exhibitors’ expenses have increased with the introduction of new sanitation equipment, protective gear and cleaning protocols.
Illinois-based Classic Cinemas opened its 13 locations in the state on June 26 with a lineup of retro screenings. Ticket sales popped the first week, but attendance quickly fell. CEO Chris Johnson decided to close the theaters again on Thursday.
“The older movies just didn’t necessarily cut it,” Johnson said. “You can only have so many showings of ‘Jurassic Park’ and ‘Harry Potter.’ At the end of the day, our livelihood is new movies. We’re going to make sure the new releases are set in stone before we get excited.”
Brock Bagby, executive vice president of B&B Theatres, said he’s faced a similar problem. The Liberty, Mo.-based chain has opened its top 16 locations, but the theaters are only doing about 10% of their normal business. Bagby and his dad recently watched “Jurassic Park” in a 130-seat auditorium with eight people in the theater, he said.
His original plan was to reopen five or 10 theaters a week. But the delay of new releases scuttled that process.
“When the movies got pushed, we decided to take a pause, because it just didn’t make sense,” Bagby said.
Some smaller chains that tried to open early by showing recent releases, like the Vin Diesel action thriller “Bloodshot” and nostalgic classics including “Jaws,” have struggled to make ends meet with those titles. What’s worse, exhibitors’ expenses have increased with the introduction of new sanitation equipment, protective gear and cleaning protocols.
Illinois-based Classic Cinemas opened its 13 locations in the state on June 26 with a lineup of retro screenings. Ticket sales popped the first week, but attendance quickly fell. CEO Chris Johnson decided to close the theaters again on Thursday.
“The older movies just didn’t necessarily cut it,” Johnson said. “You can only have so many showings of ‘Jurassic Park’ and ‘Harry Potter.’ At the end of the day, our livelihood is new movies. We’re going to make sure the new releases are set in stone before we get excited.”
Brock Bagby, executive vice president of B&B Theatres, said he’s faced a similar problem. The Liberty, Mo.-based chain has opened its top 16 locations, but the theaters are only doing about 10% of their normal business. Bagby and his dad recently watched “Jurassic Park” in a 130-seat auditorium with eight people in the theater, he said.
His original plan was to reopen five or 10 theaters a week. But the delay of new releases scuttled that process.
“When the movies got pushed, we decided to take a pause, because it just didn’t make sense,” Bagby said.
It’s still unclear how eager moviegoers will be to return to the cinema. According to data from Screen Engine/ASI, 13% of frequent moviegoers say they plan to return to theaters right away, no matter what’s playing, while 29% said they will go when there’s a movie they’re interested in. Still, 18% said they plan to wait until the pandemic is completely over. Frequent moviegoers are those who go six or more times a year, the firm said.
Studio executives, however, are confident that new movies will be able to turn profits once they hit cinemas, though they’ll have to say goodbye to the $100-million opening weekends that summer blockbusters used to generate. Studios hope that a lack of competition lets such films as “Tenet” and “Mulan” play well into the fall. That would mark a sharp contrast to the pattern for summer movies, which normally do most of their business in the first couple of weeks.
“When there are fewer movies in the marketplace, you can go for a much longer period of time,” Goldstein said. “It’s not about the first day, the first weekend, or the first week. It’s about taking a really long view of it.”
“When there are fewer movies in the marketplace, you can go for a much longer period of time,” Goldstein said. “It’s not about the first day, the first weekend, or the first week. It’s about taking a really long view of it.”