Is this the year that theaters die?

[trappedslider]

Hard to get less than what we have now. There's AMC, Cinemark, Regal, and Carmike. That's pretty much it.

There's still some regional chains, but yeah what you listed is it.

I sure hope that it won't be the case. I also fear that it'll be so. We've already lost the magic of going to a tiny 1, 2. or 3 screen theatre

We had two two screen theatres,but the chain that owned them consolidated all of their screens into an eight screen theater.

 

[Marc_C]

Teens want to go to the theatre for obvious reasons!

Since the vast majority of moviegoers are between 12 to 25 years old, I don't see theatres dying any time soon. It's not in the interest of production studios.

Those who are in peril are the cable companies who offer pay-on-demand movie rental services. Direct streaming from studio sites will kill them. Direct streaming will become mainstream but offered only after the theatres have made their profits.

 

[Ryujin]

We had two two screen theatres,but the chain that owned them consolidated all of their screens into an eight screen theater.

Back in 2018 over 5000 people backed the campaign to save the Rio Theatre in Vancouver, BC. It's a live theatre and single screen movie theatre, that was built in 1938, and was going to be sold. It would likely have turned into condos like the one I mentioned above, in Toronto. I'll probably never see the place and my only connection to it is knowing someone who takes part in a live D&D improv there, once a month, but I though it was a worthy cause. They're currently keeping the lights on by showing big screen sports, along with the usual fare.

About

The Rio Theatre on Broadway and Commercial, voted #1 Independent Theatre in Vancouver, is a multimedia venue for premier independent cinema of feature films and live entertainment. Built in 1938, the Rio has been fully restored with a state…

riotheatre.ca

 

[Wishbone]

Movie theaters will stick around I think—small theaters are feeling the squeeze pretty intensely compared to the larger chains, even before the Coronavirus hit. The National Association of Theater Owners has a good set of resources on this stuff when it comes to the United States in particular. Since the Paramount Consent decrees are out now as well we might see some consolidation among production, distributors, and streaming services like a Disney owning their own theaters as a way to own all aspects of the business.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

It’s all about COVID. Things settle down and people will go nuts and do anything to get out again.

some will fold and from their ashes others will spring up. To entice people there might be more food (dinner) and booze options/other services added to change the experience.

just a guess. If COVID improves I am betting people are going to get rich if they wait like vultures in the industry. But a bunch of small chains and independents are probably permanently hosed.

 

[Wishbone]

It’s all about COVID. Things settle down and people will go nuts and do anything to get out again.

some will fold and from their ashes others will spring up. To entice people there might be more food (dinner) and booze options/other services added to change the experience.

just a guess. If COVID improves I am betting people are going to get rich if they wait like vultures in the industry. But a bunch of small chains and independents are probably permanently hosed.

Small chains and independents were probably already hosed by trends of market consolidation and the rise of streaming independent of COVID. COVID obviously poured some accelerant on those long-burning fires, but its part of why people like Martin Scorcese were decrying the dominance of comic book movies and Bong Joon Ho was talking up his love for movie theaters ahead of his Oscar win.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

Small chains and independents were probably already hosed by trends of market consolidation and the rise of streaming independent of COVID. COVID obviously poured some accelerant on those long-burning fires, but its part of why people like Martin Scorcese were decrying the dominance of comic book movies and Bong Joon Ho was talking up his love for movie theaters ahead of his Oscar win.

I feel bad for them. In a rural area during grad school we went to little independent theaters. It was nice. You could even afford an arm load of refreshments. I am sure they are busted now and don’t even want to look them up.

 

[Retreater]

We still have a drive-in close by, and it was hopping last summer. We went there for our honeymoon since our wedding, reception, and big plans got scrapped.
I'd been cutting down over the past few years going to the cinema anyway. I went only for the big event movies. The next "only in cinemas" movie I'd probably want to see is the new Spider-Man. My wife has already told me she won't be ready to go despite its December release date.
For her (a reasonably healthy 28 year old) COVID was the end of public events. I'm a 42 year old with existing health conditions, but I'll be willing to do reasonable things once I get vaccinated. So I think it comes down to what people are willing to do. I expect I'm in the majority, so I think cinemas will bounce back.

 

[MarkB]

We still have a drive-in close by, and it was hopping last summer. We went there for our honeymoon since our wedding, reception, and big plans got scrapped.
I'd been cutting down over the past few years going to the cinema anyway. I went only for the big event movies. The next "only in cinemas" movie I'd probably want to see is the new Spider-Man. My wife has already told me she won't be ready to go despite its December release date.
For her (a reasonably healthy 28 year old) COVID was the end of public events. I'm a 42 year old with existing health conditions, but I'll be willing to do reasonable things once I get vaccinated. So I think it comes down to what people are willing to do. I expect I'm in the majority, so I think cinemas will bounce back.

Next winter is probably going to be the true test of how stable our "new new normal" will be after the vaccines have been mostly rolled-out and people have got used to socialising again. It's when any new strains of COVID are likely to start hitting us, and will be when we see how well the current vaccines hold up, or how agile the pharmaceutical companies are if new waves of vaccine are required to cover adaptations by the virus. It'll be our first taste of whether COVID eventually develops into another seasonal flu.

 

[Umbran]

It's when any new strains of COVID are likely to start hitting us

No. Now is the time we start seeing new strains take hold.

Production of new strains is a statistical process. The more people are infected, the more likely we are to see a relevant new strain produced. As the number of active cases drop, new strains arising become less likely. So, in the autumn, when hopefully most folks are vaccinated, we should see a minimum of cases, and thus a minimum chance of new strains.