Is it safe to go back to the movies? Here’s what experts say about theaters

Cineplexes across the United States are reopening or preparing to reopen their doors after weeks-long closures during coronavirus lockdowns. But is it safe to go back to the movies?

“We are following, we believe, the best guidelines that we can to open safely,” said Tim Handren, chief executive of Santikos Entertainment, reported The New York Times.

How will theaters look after the coronavirus pandemic? And will movie lovers even want to go back after streaming films at home?

Here’s what you need to know about going back to the movies.

What are the health risks?

A packed cineplex might seem like a recipe for disaster, but with proper precautions going to the movies may not be that dangerous, Quartz reported. No outbreaks were traced to any theaters even before coronavirus lockdowns.

“In a setting where we’re not talking, we’re just passively breathing and wearing masks, it might be a safer bet than a noisy, crowded bar,” said Jade Flinn, a faculty member at Johns Hopkins Medicine who trains nurses at its biocontainment unit, according to the publication.

“At movie theaters, if you’re not eating popcorn, you’re just sitting there with your mask on,” Flinn said, Quartz reported. Also, everyone’s facing the same way, which helps reduce the chances of spreading coronavirus - with proper social distancing.

But some health experts are dubious.

“You’re not going to catch me at a theater any time soon,” said Dr. Diana Cervantes, an expert in infection prevention and control who is an assistant professor at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, a medical school in Fort Worth, reported The New York Times.

“When you think of what aids transmission, it is going to be the type of contact you have with the person who’s infected, the length of time, proximity — all of those factors come into play,” Cervantes said, according to the publication. “The amount of time starts to be a little too prolonged for me to be sitting there with a bunch of strangers.”

What safety steps do theaters plan?

While company plans and state requirements vary, social distancing will be the key.

In California, for example, theaters are required to limit theater seating to 25% of capacity or 100 people, whichever is less, the Los Angeles Times reported. Seats must be removed or rendered inaccessible to keep movie-goers at least six feet apart.

Theaters also will have to implement a reservation system to stagger arrival times and prevent traffic jams in the aisles, according to the publication.

Movie-goers will be asked to wear face masks except when eating or drinking, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Will movie lovers feel safe returning?

After months of streaming movies from the convenience of home, how will movie lovers feel about going back to theaters? Eager, industry observers hope.

“When this lifts, none of us are ever going to want to be anywhere close to our couch or our TV ever again,” said Richard Rushfield, who runs a film-industry newsletter, Vulture reported. “Our couch is going to have associations for us of this awful time.”

At a Texas theater that has already reopened, Grady McClung, 51, and his family turned out recently for a Christian-themed movie, The New York Times reported.

“If you feel like you have fear, then that’s perfectly fine, and you don’t go out,” McClung said, according to the publication. “But other people need to get their lives back. We didn’t go to movies all the time. I mean, probably five or six a year. But this was something that was right for now.”

An EDO survey found that 75% of respondents said they are likely to return to theaters once some delayed summer blockbusters hit — with proper precautions, Deadline reports.

Will theaters survive?

With the expense of refitting theaters for coronavirus safety and limitations on seating, can movie theaters even stay open?

“We really had to change the way that we operate our business,” Jason Ostrow, vice president of development for dine-in-theater Star Cinema Grill in Texas, CNBC reported.

AMC Theatres, the world’s largest cinema chain, has said it has “substantial doubts” whether it can remain in business for the long term, McClatchy News previously reported.

The company, controlled by Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda Group, says it lost up to $2.4 billion in the first months of 2020, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

AMC plans to reopen most of its theaters by the end of July ahead of the July 17 release of “Tenet” and the July 24 release of “Mulan,” The Kansas City Star reported.

But even when movie theaters reopen, AMC Theatres faces the prospect of reduced output from Hollywood studios, which delayed several ready-to-release summer blockbusters and halted work on new films, CNN reported.

This story was originally published June 9, 2020 at 3:36 PM with the headline "Is it safe to go back to the movies? Here’s what experts say about theaters."