Wyatt Hall | @thewyatthall15<\/p>\n
One of the industries most affected by the coronavirus pandemic is the movie industry. Theaters have been closed due to safety concerns, and films that were supposed to premiere months ago on the big screens are now going straight to streaming, hoping to make even a portion of their budgets back. Despite daily cases being <\/span>significantly higher<\/span><\/a> than when theaters originally closed down, big chains such as AMC and Regal have started reopening. What should we expect? Should you even go? What does the future of cinema look like post-quarantine?<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Current Situation<\/b><\/p>\n With two of the largest theater companies in the country staging their grand reopening last weekend, pressure is building for smaller theaters to do the same. The biggest question right now for theaters is: Will people even go? The theaters that have opened have put in extensive changes to try to keep their audiences as safe as possible, but it\u2019s questionable as to how safe they really are.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0AMC won\u2019t even give a solid answer on whether it will enforce wearing masks or not. The best it has given is simultaneously saying all guests are required to wear masks but still allowing the removal of them with\u00a0<\/span>policy phrases <\/span><\/a>like: \u201cIn the auditorium, masks may be removed to enjoy food and drinks.\u201d Regal isn\u2019t much better, saying the same thing but <\/span>still seating 50% capacity in theaters<\/span><\/a> (every other seat) compared to AMC\u2019s 30% capacity and seating row separation. That isn\u2019t even mentioning the sub-par standard for air filtration in their facilities. Fixing this won\u2019t do much to help but <\/span>only AMC has invested <\/span><\/a> in upgrading.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Some (but certainly not all) moviegoers will take these changes as good enough to go see the newest films like Christopher Nolan\u2019s \u201cTenet\u201d and Marvel\u2019s \u201cThe New Mutants.\u201d\u00a0 Health experts, however, are <\/span>speaking out about the public health risk<\/span><\/a> of going to the movies. Dr. Anne W. Rimoin, a professor of epidemiology at UCLA said, <\/span>\u201cShort of renting out an entire theater, which is obviously not an option for most of us, there is no scenario in which going to a movie theater is a good idea.\u201d Fellow epidemiologist Dr. Abdul El-Sayed agreed, \u201cit\u2019s just about the last thing I\u2019d do right now.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Hopefully all of that is enough to convince you to wait a little longer to go back to the movies. While local theaters like Liberty Hall provide alternatives such as its \u201c<\/span>virtual cinema<\/span><\/a>,\u201d it still offers physical screenings that feel unsafe to visit for the time being. It\u2019s best to hold out and keep watching releases from the comfort of your home while we wait for cases to go down and vaccines to be made.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Future<\/b><\/p>\n One thing that is definitely a concern is the long-term impact of COVID-19 on the movie industry. We\u2019re already seeing the financial impact on big companies like Disney, with its <\/span>studio division seeing an \u201cAvengers: Endgame\u201d sized revenue loss<\/span><\/a> compared to what it made around this time last year. A big part of that is the delay of two big-budget releases: \u201cMulan\u201d and \u201cBlack Widow,\u201d the former having now been released on Disney+ streaming service for a hefty price of $30. But if the biggest entertainment company in the world is suffering, who knows how its smaller competitors will fare.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n