Theater Industry on the brink
Variety---
Regal Cinemas owner Cineworld is closing all of the chain’s locations in the U.S., as well as its theaters in the U.K. in the wake of MGM and Universal’s decision to delay the release of “No Time to Die” until next year, according to Variety.
Quote:
The new closures, set to take effect as soon as next week, come just a few months after the company began reopening its locations amid the coronavirus pandemic earlier this summer. Cineworld operates 128 venues in the U.K. and Ireland in addition to Regal’s 546 theaters in the U.S.
The decision to close its locations comes a day after MGM and Universal announced that the latest James Bond film, “No Time to Die” would be pushed back again, with a statement from the filmmakers citing a need for the film “to be seen by a worldwide theatrical audience.” “No Time to Die” was initially set to hit theaters last April, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was moved to Nov. 20, then Nov. 25, and now to next April.
Following Disney’s move to change release dates for many of its films — most notably “Black Widow,” which was set for release on Nov. 6 but was moved to summer 2021 — the loss of “No Time to Die” leaves theaters with a dearth of major releases for the remaining months of 2020.
Last month, Cineworld reported a $1.6 billion loss in the first half of 2020, with group revenues sinking to $712.4 million from $2.15 billion in the first six months of 2019.
Tens of thousands of their employees will be let go, if they haven't already. There's no guarantee when or if those theaters will reopen.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
In addition.....S&P Global Ratings on Friday downgraded movie theater chain AMC Entertainment’s credit rating to CCC- from CCC+, putting the chain’s borrowing power in junk territory and suggesting it’s at risk of imminent default with little prospect for recovery.
Approximately 70% of theaters nationwide have reopened since the end of August, but a combination of a lack of several strong titles and fears of contracting COVID-19 has kept audiences away. “Tenet” led the September box office charts this past month with just $41.2 million, and overall business for the month dropped 78% year-over-year.
Quote:
“The ongoing coronavirus pandemic will continue to have an impact on theater attendance and consumer behavior into 2021,” S&P analysts wrote. “We anticipate that global cinema attendance will recover much more slowly in the fourth quarter of 2020 than we had previously expected and now expect the impact of COVID-19 on theater attendance to last well into 2021.
“Given our expectations for a high rate of cash burn, we believe the company will run out of liquidity within the next six months unless it is able to raise additional capital, which we view as unlikely, or attendance levels materially improve,” they continued.
The big concern that led to S&P’s negative outlook for AMC is the chain’s liquidity, which has been a talking point since the beginning of the shutdown.
S&P analysts said that even despite AMC’s recent cash raise — the agency subsequently raised the chain’s credit rating in August — and debt restructuring, they don’t believe “the company will have sufficient liquidity to cover its fixed charges over the next six months.”
As of August 31 AMC said it had a cash balance of $507.9 million, including $37.5 million in proceeds from the sale of its Baltics theaters. The theater chain has also indicated that its cash burn accelerated to roughly $115.2 million in the months of July and August due to the cost of re-opening theaters and it expects September to be the same.
“We believe a liquidity crisis is all but inevitable even if the company were to fully re-open all of its theaters,” S&P analysts wrote. “We think cinema attendance will remain constrained by consumers’ health and safety concerns and social-distancing measures until an effective treatment or vaccine becomes widely available — which could be around mid-2021 — and will not recover to 2019 levels until 2022.
“In addition, any potential second wave of the virus this winter could force AMC to reclose its theaters,” they continued. “Although unlikely, we could raise the rating if AMC were able to secure additional liquidity without further burdening its capital structure and its cash generation improved following a stronger recovery in cinema attendance and operating performance than we currently expect.”
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Honestly not surprised.
Covid has pretty much killed the movie theater industry because it forced Disney and others to improvise and release movies onto streaming services which are the future of entertainment.
My wife and I watched I Still Believe when it was released on Amazon early for $30. Kinda expensive when you consider it was just the two of us but for a movie for a family of four and you can control the snacks (which aren’t outrageously priced) it’s not a bad idea. We did it with Trolls 2.
I just wish Disney would get 100% on board. They moved Black Widow and the rest of the MCU slate to next year. Just put it on D+ and be done with it.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
The movie theater business is probably largely dead. Perhaps drive-in moves, which allow for social distancing, will make a mini-comeback, but I expect a large number of traditional walk-in theaters are doomed. This possibly could also greatly reduce the number of "event" movies that depend upon big, and expensive, special effects.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Quote:
Originally Posted by
WVRed
My wife and I watched I Still Believe when it was released on Amazon early for $30. Kinda expensive when you consider it was just the two of us but for a movie for a family of four and you can control the snacks (which aren’t outrageously priced) it’s not a bad idea. We did it with Trolls 2.
Yeah - this both makes a ton of sense and sucks all at the same time.
If you are a couple, or a family, this pricing model turns out just fine for you. You are probably going to spend $20-30 to go see it in a theater anyways. If you were going to get snacks and a drink, you'd easily spend that. So it makes sense for both a couple/family, and it makes sense for the company to charge that price.
For losers like me? It's a non starter. I just can't justify paying $25-30 for just me to watch a movie once.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
I will absolutely be spending $30 to watch Dune. They could charge $100 and I’d be in.
With that said: yeah, this all sucks.
I love going to the movie theater, always have. I hate to see it go down like this.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Should mention we got a fandango gift card for Christmas last year and haven’t used it yet. I’m wondering if we ever will.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Quote:
Originally Posted by
RedsBaron
The movie theater business is probably largely dead. Perhaps drive-in moves, which allow for social distancing, will make a mini-comeback, but I expect a large number of traditional walk-in theaters are doomed. This possibly could also greatly reduce the number of "event" movies that depend upon big, and expensive, special effects.
Assuming the fed doesn’t do anything, I think you’ll see major studios step in at some point and bail out some of these theaters. They still need these brick and mortar locations.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Kinsm
Assuming the fed doesn’t do anything, I think you’ll see major studios step in at some point and bail out some of these theaters. They still need these brick and mortar locations.
Disagree. If that were the case they would have bailed out Blockbuster years ago.
Streaming is the future and studios will adapt.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Quote:
Originally Posted by
WVRed
Disagree. If that were the case they would have bailed out Blockbuster years ago.
Streaming is the future and studios will adapt.
The industry was already headed in that direction. The pandemic just accelerated it.
Only big action blockbusters were making money in theaters, and all everything else was going to streaming, where they were striving. After the pandemic, when people will be able to safely go to theaters, going to the movies will likely be similar to going to see theater, a special event for big movies. The days of going to the movies to see all your favorite movies every weekend will fade away.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Quote:
Originally Posted by
WVRed
Disagree. If that were the case they would have bailed out Blockbuster years ago.
Streaming is the future and studios will adapt.
Only one or two major studios currently prepared to stream movies, the others are not. Blockbuster was a different animal - rental not viewing. There are hundreds of millions of humans who still want to go out and be entertained at a theater, they just won't do so until there is a vaccine.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Bring back the drive in, or cut off each seat in a plexiglass booth.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Quote:
Originally Posted by
KronoRed
Bring back the drive in, or cut off each seat in a plexiglass booth.
Temporary Drive-ins have been popping up during the epidemic.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Quote:
Originally Posted by
marcshoe
Temporary Drive-ins have been popping up during the epidemic.
There’s one here in Parkersburg that closed a couple years ago. They’ve been trying to get the owner to open it back up. Even mentioned using it for high school graduation which would have been nice.
Re: Theater Industry on the brink
Drive ins are doing well near Los Angeles. There’s an old one that kept alive quietly for the last 20 years outside the county limits that now every hipster and young person in the area seems to be frequenting based on what I see on social media. The Pasadena Rose Bowl is now doing drive-in events like comedy shows and movie screenings. There’s at least 2-3 more pretty organized drive-in pop-ups/re-opened swap meet drive-ins. I won’t go to a theater or a drive-in until after COVID is treatable or gone though, now that my nickname is very soon about to change from “chef” to “pops”. ;)