They’ve said it before, but this time they really mean it. AMC Theatres has official plans to slowly reopen its locations beginning next week to make way for new releases, including The New Mutants and Tenet. The theater chain has revealed the detailed new policies it has in place, including mask requirements, enhanced cleaning measures and reduced auditorium capacities.
AMC Theatres locations across the nation have been closed for five months, and the company has just come off losing over a half a billion dollars during the past financial quarter. But the chain is poised for a comeback with theaters in 35 states going back in business starting between August 20 and September 3. The company has released the following video to give moviegoers a comprehensive peak into what to expect about their next trip to the movies:
There are a number of changes that AMC Theatres has been hard at work on during the mandatory shutdown period of its locations. What is being called the AMC Safe & Clean plan will require employees and guests to wear masks inside locations and wear them while viewing the movie, unless they are enjoying beverages and snacks. The AMC menu has been temporarily simplified to classic theater food, including popcorn, soft drinks, hot dogs and candy, and refills will not be provided temporarily.
The chain has invested in HEPA filter vacuums and MERV 13 air filters, and employees will be using electrostatic disinfectant sprayers to clean auditoriums before each showing. There will be more time between each showings as well to give cleaning staff the chance to disinfect the seating areas thoroughly. At showings, AMC encourages customers to buy tickets online and are allowing audiences to move spots if they don’t feel comfortable where they are. Each auditorium will operate at a capacity of 30 percent or less.
Ten states with AMC Theatres locations have not been assigned reopening dates for any of its theaters. If you live in Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina or Washington, your local AMC location has not been assigned a reopening date at the time of this article’s publish date until “local guidelines allow.” You can find the status of the theater nearest to you here.
For the theaters opening on August 20, AMC Theatres is offering 1920 prices on Thursday only for movie tickets. Customers will only pay 15 cents (plus tax) to go see any movie at their newly open locations. AMC is also offering a limited time five dollar month membership (for the month only) for new AMC Stubs A-List members. The subscription service is usually around $20 a month. Prior members will be able to manually reactivate their benefits once they decide they want to return to theaters.
It should be noted that the AMC Theatres CEO did allude to these upgrades being “passed down to the consumers,” through ticket prices and/or concessions this week. Stay tuned on CinemaBlend for more updates on the return of movie theaters.