AMC theaters are struggling to stay afloat due to low attendance and the two Bloomington AMC theaters are no exception to that. These theaters have seen a sharp decrease in attendance due to so few new movies coming out because of the Covid-19 pandemic. Since the pandemic started, many AMC employees, like Elijah Carpenter, say few people come in overall and that even on the weekends the theaters are pretty empty. “We opened here I think a month ago and it’s been roughly from no one coming in to ten people coming in,” said Carpenter.
Jack Carpenter discusses how it’s been for AMC employees during the pandemic.
The movie theater employees have taken on extra cleaning tasks since the pandemic started to ensure that all of the theaters are sanitized and clean. The employees have blocked off every other row in each theater and they spray the seats with an electrostatic spray machine. These machines are used to sanitize the area and reduce the risk of germs spreading for both the employees and the patrons.
Jimmy McClung describes the new duties AMC employees have.
While the theater chain has taken precautions to make sure the spread of Covid-19 does not occur in the theaters they have also tried to compensate for the lack of new movies by playing older movies for a lower price. But, they say, that is not enough to get movie enthusiasts like Bonnie Weinzapfel back to the theater. “Before the pandemic I would go to the movies like two to three times a week,” said Weinzapfel. AMC theaters is now only showing 2 to 3 new movies overall with various theaters showing old movies for lower prices. “I was the only one in the theater,” said Weinzapfel. These movie theater lovers have resorted to other outlets such as streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime TV, Disney Plus and others. These streaming services are now releasing new movies that were originally going to be in theaters.
IU Student Bonnie Weinzapfel discusses if going to the movies is worth it in a pandemic world.
Regal Theaters is a direct competitor of AMC and they recently had to temporarily close all 536 of their U.S theaters due to low attendance. According to AMC officials, the company will run out of money by the end of 2020 if attendance does not increase. Until movies return to theaters it seems as though streaming services will be the place in which most people access their movies. AMC is currently offering a deal where you can rent out an entire theater for 99 dollars and watch any movie you choose with a group of 20 people. The AMC officials are hoping this new opportunity will increase attendance and in turn cash funds. For now, both of the AMC theaters are still operating, and you can but tickets in person or online.
