Another attempt at a return to some normalcy has been thwarted as AMC Theaters announced that it would be delaying its reopening in response to the continuing spread of coronavirus. The world’s largest exhibition chain announced the decision following news that the release of highly anticipated Hollywood films Tenet and Mulan would be further delayed by several weeks. The United States has continued to see rise in coronavirus cases making the reopening of theaters on the initial date of July 15 highly unlikely. In particular, states that were swift to reopen businesses once it was deemed safe enough to do so such as Florida and Texas have seen surges in coronavirus rates in the past couple of weeks.
Now, AMC said that it is planning for a reopening two weeks after, expecting to open 450 out of its 600-plus theaters on July 30. The rest of the remaining theaters will hopefully open back in early August.
In a statement, AMC CEO Adam Aron said, “We continue to devote extraordinary resources into our plan to operate our theater with a hyper commitment to the safety and health of our guests and associates, notably in the United States through our new AMC Safe & Clean initiative. Our theater general managers across the U.S. started working full time again today and are back in their theaters gearing up to get their buildings fully ready just a few weeks from now for moviegoers. That happy day, when we can welcome guests back into most of our U.S. theaters, will be Thursday, July 30.”
While the bulk of AMC’s operations is in the United States, it also has a global reach, operating in 14 countries in Europe and the Middle East. Assuming that all goes as planned in the coming weeks, it is expected that AMC’s approximately 1,000 global locations will be back up and running by early August.
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